


All Hell Breaks Loose and Then Some

by Kirabaros



Series: Chronicles of Absolution Season 1 [7]
Category: Chronicles of Absolution, Supernatural
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2019-04-27 11:58:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 21
Words: 90,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14424945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kirabaros/pseuds/Kirabaros
Summary: 1.07 The game is on now that Sam and Angela have disappeared. The storm is coming and it looks like the bad guys are holding all the cards as Dean rushes to find his brother and friend before all hell breaks loose. Season 1 finale.





	1. Chapter 1

_The Road So Far…_

… _Suddenly she was hit from behind. She fell forward and she lost her grip on her blade. She watched as it slid away through the puddles of water. The creatures couldn’t touch it so that wasn’t a worry. Suddenly she felt what seemed to be a pipe come down on her back. She grunted in pain as it hit hard. She had little recovery time for the others grabbed for her. They held her up and the creature she had stalked came up to her. With a single finger, the creature ran it down the side of her neck_ …

… “Wait a minute. So you were dream walking?”

“Yeah… I think. At least that was what she said.”…

… Sam took the phone and flipped it open as he teased, “Nothing like that. I’d much rather not be on the receiving end of your sword.” He gave a slight smile. He entered in a set of numbers. When he was finished, he handed the phone back still open. “This is my number. Um if you need help on a job. Give me a call.”…

… Dean glanced at his brother and then asked, “Youwanttocomewithus?”

“What?”

“You want to come with us?” Dean repeated, enunciating his words. “It’d be nice to have back up once in a while and I don’t know about you but you seem to be a good luck charm so far. This is twice that I’ve gotten free pie. Well maybe you can help us with the yellow eyed demon and maybe you can drive since Samantha and I are on pain pills.”

Angela glanced at Sam and saw a guilty look. She got the idea that he used that to get Dean on board with her being around. His own reasons, well he could explain when he was ready. She replied, “I’ve never been called a good luck charm with regards to pie but alright.”…

… You do have the choice to tell them but be aware that such revelations always have consequences that are not always foreseen…

… Christian sighed. There was no going back now. He said, “A demon is starting trouble in Wyoming.” He saw the expectant look on Angela’s face. He knew she wasn’t going to like it. He added, “It is Lenya…”

… _You’re in over your head. Here there are memories that’ll haunt you_ …

… _Yellow Eyes smiled and said, “You can’t save them all no matter what you try_ …

… Lenya then got hostile and her voice took a deep overtone, “You aren’t in a position to make threats bitch. You can try and protect them but in the end, Sam Winchester will be ours.” She was then gone leaving Angela on the empty street…

_Now_

Drip… drip… drip…

The sounds of water falling made a pleasant rhythm. It was like those CDs that had that inspiration music on them with water dripping in the background to give a sense of tranquility. Accompanying it were the smells of wet earth and water; the remnants of a spring rain. It was a nice break after busting out of Folsom Prison and that thing with the djinn. In between were a couple of easy jobs like salt and burns and relaxing at Bobby’s for a few days. It was good to be able to sleep in late…

It was pleasant but good things had to come to an end. Angela slowly opened her eyes to see nothing but open sky. She frowned as she blinked to get a better grasp of where she was at. It was strange and peaceful and yet it didn’t seem right. She sat up slowly to find that she was on the ground in the middle of nowhere. Frowning she looked around to try and find a landmark or something that would tell her where she was.

The smells of spring rain were still in her nose and she could smell the fresh earth as she dusted herself off and stood up. It was a good thing she was wearing jeans, a t-shirt and a flannel one underneath her dark brown jacket. She could feel a slight chill in the air but it was an unnatural one and her response was to rub her upper arms with her hands as she looked around. She was hit with the realization that she was alone and she felt a little bit afraid but was more concerned that the boys were going to wonder where she was.

Angela fished into her pocket for her cell phone. She found it amongst a few small odds and ends in her jacket pocket and smiled a bit ruefully. She did tell Sam once that she used anything in her pockets if she could when in a jam. Looking around she kept an eye out for anything as she pulled it up and looked at it. The ‘no signal’ display had her frustrated as she shoved it back into her pocket.

_Where oh where do I head to next? And how the hell did I get here?_

Angela looked around the clearing that she ended up in. The only thing running through her mind was the fear that Sam and Dean thought that she ran out on them again. She had barely gotten back on the bus and they managed to make it through a few cases together with some needing a little more creativity like the Folsom job.

The guard at the prison was a friend of John’s and with Dean’s sense of loyalty to family and friends, they agreed to the job. Well Sam had some objection to it since it meant going to prison and there was the problem of her getting involved since men and women didn’t mix in a prison. It was Dean’s idea that she be hired on as a nurse. What Angela found strange was Sam objecting to even that.

It was a perfect cover since she was knowledgeable in medicine and she had a talent with healing. In fact ever since she came back onto the bus Dean practically started worshiping her talent in that area. In fact he tentatively asked her to teach him a bit about her stuff. The way he asked was along the lines of Sam using the puppy dog eyes to get what he wanted and she had tried hard not to laugh. She realized that Dean was trying to make up to her for his behavior and agreed to be his teacher in that regard. She made it be known that she forgave him and even let it be known that it was her fault too.

Well the Folsom job had its hitches. Even though she was a nurse, she wasn’t oblivious. She found out that the FBI was coming and she became worried. One of the reasons she was so good at what she did was that she knew how to stay out of the limelight of the cops. She had no idea what to do to help the boys with this. Dean was wanted for murder and the bank job and it wasn’t clear on that with regards to Sam and it was probably likely on the credit card scams. She had considered appealing to a few friends she knew in law enforcement.

It was a moot point since the plan went off in terms of an escape and she managed to make it possible that she was a temporary. It was true since the regular nurse was actually a friend of a friend. That was how she explained it to the boys. Then after that were a couple of salt and burns and some R&R at Bobby’s and on the road. Then the job with the djinn. Dean got the short end of the stick and she could tell that he had been affected by that. She knew that he wondered about the what ifs like what if his mother hadn’t died in the fire and at the hands of Yellow Eyes.

The djinn job had her pissed since in effect the thing hurt Dean and she didn’t like it at all. It made her want to rip the thing’s head off. The fact that she had gotten so angry like Dean would if Sam were injured by someone bothered her slightly. It seemed that mindset about people harming her own was still ingrained in her mind. It was a strange concept to her and she wasn’t sure if it was appropriate or not. It was against Cal then but now she wasn’t sure and it was a thing to think about later. At the moment though she was concerned with finding out where the hell she was.

Angela walked around the clearing and reached out with her senses. She had to find which way was north and that could give her a sense of where to go. She rubbed her arms again wandering around. She then heard a noise in the forest. She started and dropped into a defensive posture as she heard the rustle again and turned in the direction that it came in.

Out of the forest came a young man. She judged him to be in his early twenties and he looked scared. Well he was when he came out and said, “Please don’t’ hurt me. I’m lost… I don’t know where I am.”

Angela relaxed a bit but even she wasn’t stupid to be totally relaxed. Still she could make herself pleasant and put the poor kid at ease. She replied, “You’re not the only one kid.” She continued to look around trying to see where the kid came around. “Where did you come from?”

The kid stuttered slightly before replying, “In the woods about a couple of miles back. The last place I remember being at was in my room studying for a final and then I woke up here. The name’s Gheri. Al Gheri.”

“Interesting name kid,” Angela replied finding a nice hunk of wood that could be shaped into a staff. “You can call me Angela.”

“Do you know what is happening?”

“No.”

Suddenly there was a tinkling of laughter that was very familiar. Angela brought up the hunk of wood ready to use it. It was slightly off balance but she could compensate as necessary. She heard the laughter again but it was a different timbre. She followed it looking around until her eyes lighted on the one she had been searching for. He smiled at her and said, “Well I see you found a friend. This should make the game much more interesting.”

Angela narrowed her eyes and replied, “I have no wish to play your game… Azazel.”

****

_24 Hours Earlier_

“Pretty good hustle kid,” Angela replied as she signed to the kid that was holding a camera and a Polaroid. She grinned at the kid and signed, “Four dollars.”

 _Yes. OK_ , the kid signed.

Angela smiled as she fished out her wallet and took out four singles and handed them to the kid. She took the Polaroid in return and picked up the newspaper that she had bought from the stand that the kid was working. She then took out a five and handed it to the kid and signed, “This is for your college fund. Okay?”

The kid smiled and signed back that he understood. His mom who was running the stand waited until he went to put the money away to say, “That was very generous of you and nice of you to put up with my son’s schemes.”

Angela smiled at the woman and replied, “He was telling me about the deaf school that he wanted to go to. I heard of it. It’s a very good school and they do scholarships.”

“It was very nice of you to help him out,” the kid’s mother replied. “Thank you for your kindness. You have a good heart.”

 _If only you knew about my ‘good heart.’_ Angela smiled and replied, “For me it is only money but worth it for a good cause. I believe all kids should have a chance at a good education no matter what their background.”

“Jonah will remember this. He told me you were a kind lady and that was before you came to my stand. I must ask, are you a teacher? You sign so well.”

Angela gave a slight smile. She tucked her paper under her arm and replied, “I had a friend in college who was deaf and she taught me how to sign. We were paired to tutor in our history class and she grew frustrated writing out everything and she was still a bit self-conscious about using her voice. So she taught me and that’s all she wrote.”

“That’s nice.”

“Yeah. We still keep in touch.” Angela saw that Sam was coming towards her. She had lingered long enough and she knew that Dean wasn’t too good on the patience but he was trying. He had been learning since she agreed to teach him her herbs. “Well I better go. We have to hit the road if we’re going to make good time.”

“Alright. Have a good trip and thank you.”

Angela gave a slight wave and walked away from the stand to meet Sam. She gave a slight smirk as she said, “So did the music Nazi send you over to find me?”

Sam gave a slight chuckle as he shook his head. He replied, “You better not let Dean hear you say that or he’ll give the list of rules for the car.”

“And he’ll not follow them because it’s his car,” Angela replied with grin of her own. She followed Sam as they started back towards the Impala. They had stopped to gas up since they were running on near empty. She went to check the local newsstand for a paper to check for the word out on the underground as was the code word for the supernatural.

It was there where she was picking up her paper that she was looking in the direction of the boys when the kid took her picture. It was then that he proceeded to hustle her talking and signing about saving up to pay for tuition for a school for the deaf. The kid reminded her of Kara from her college days. She couldn’t resist especially when the kid flashed a look that was all too familiar. She folded like a bad hand.

“I see you folded for the look.”

Angela looked at Sam who was grinning at her. She replied, “And I told you that I’m a sucker for kids, which is why when you do it, I don’t fall for it.” She had pointed at Sam with the photo she had bought only to have it snatched out of her hand by Sam.

“So this was what you bought?” Sam waved it to hold it out of her reach. It seemed like a good opportunity to tease her a bit.

“Give it here, Sam.” Angela jumped to try and reach it. Even though she and Sam were almost in similar height, he still had one up on her in terms of arm reach. She looked like a little kid trying to reach something that was on a high shelf. “Just because you have one up on me on arm length…”

“It makes it all the more fun,” Sam replied trying to hold her off. When she lunged, he dodged and started running towards the Impala knowing that she would give chase. When he was sure of a safe distance, he took a look at the photo.

It was a nice one and it captured her features beautifully. It looked like one of those professional photos that made it into magazines. She was looking off into the distance with a look on her face that looked like a cross between sad and happy. Some might even call it pensive. He was so busy looking at it he didn’t notice that she had caught up until she leapt onto his back and locked her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. “Give it here Sam.”

It was rather comical even to Dean when he came out of the minimart and saw Angela wrestling with Sam over something he was keeping away from her. Dean couldn’t resist and took a picture of it with his camera phone. The stoic Angela acting like a kid for once… it made for great blackmail/prank material. Angela eventually managed to get whatever it was back and shove it into her pocket. He said, “I guess I missed the show.”

“Eat me,” both said in unison much to Dean’s laughter.

****

“Angie you want some?”

Angela said nothing as she stretched out against her duffle and continued to read her paper. She was humming the song that she was listening to on her iPod. She turned the page as she continued to read the paper. She heard the question vaguely but it didn’t register.

Sam held the pack of trail mix out towards the back. When she didn’t respond he asked, “Are you still sore about the whole picture thing?”

Angela still didn’t answer except to sing a coherent line of the music she was listening to. Dean noticed it and motioned to Sam to hand him the crumpled up receipt from the bag. With careful aiming while driving he tossed it towards the back where it bopped her right on her paper and rolled down into her lap. It gave the effect he wanted and he said, “Hey Angie, you lost back there?” Dean peered into the rear view mirror to see what she was going to say,

Angela had been startled from reading the article that had caught her interest. She pulled the buds out of her ear just in time to hear Dean’s question. She replied after stretching, which was a feat in of itself, “I guess I was a bit lost. Did someone ask me something?”

“Well Sam just asked you if you wanted some of this healthy crap.” Dean snatched the bag of trail mix out of Sam’s hands and held it up. “Seriously you eat this stuff? With your appetite?”

Angela gave a mock frown knowing that Dean could see it. Both boys knew she didn’t eat much nowadays but she could understand Dean’s joking about it. She still ate more than they did but it was less than when they first met up with her. She replied, “Yeah I do but no thanks. That packaged stuff is shit.”

“Thanks Angie,” Sam replied not really meaning it.

“No problem,” Angela replied, “Now is there something someone wanted to ask me besides food? If not I’m catching up on the news.”

“Finding us another case?”

“Just finding out what the word is on the underground,” Angela replied as she opened up her paper again.

Sam turned around to look at what she was reading and caught the title. “You got to be kidding me. Pickwick Papers?”

Dean had no idea what the hell that was and asked, “What is that?”

Sam answered, “It’s more or less a newspaper for kids adapted from the book _Little Women_. Most of it is stories and stuff for kids. Just pure entertainment by a company actually called Pilgrim’s Progress.”

Dean frowned. “Seriously?”

Angela wanted to laugh at that. They thought she was nuts for buying a kid’s paper. Well if only they knew the whole story which she was going to give them now. “Yes seriously and I do mean I am catching up with what’s going on. Pickwick Papers is designed for kids but it is a good source of information… if you have the right cipher.”

“Cipher?”

“She means a key, like a code that makes sense out of what is written. Remember when we were kids…”

“Alright I get it Sam,” Dean replied, “So this kid’s paper is like the official supernatural paper then?”

“Oh yes and from the looks of things someone has been blabbing about the slayers. I guess I’ll be hearing something from the big boys. Oh and it looks like a new hunter joined the fold. Remember Jo from the Point? She and Barcalow tag teamed on a hunt with a werewolf.”

“Always thought she was a nice tough chick,” Dean commented.

“Really?” Sam was curious about it. “Do you happen to have the cipher handy?”

“Yep. In my mind. One for each month and they haven’t changed. I long ago memorized it but I have the actual booklet in my other pack. Knock yourself out.” Angela leaned back to relax some more and read.

“So Angie anything in there related to a job?”

“Maybe. I haven’t checked that yet but just be prepared for rain tonight.”

Dean accelerated a bit and replied, “I’m not even going to ask how you know that.”

It turned out that Angela was right. It was raining when they pulled up to a diner. As soon as Dean stopped the car, he pulled out a wad of cash and said, “Don’t forget the extra onions.”

Sam gave an annoyed look. “Dude, Angie and I are the ones who are gonna have to ride in the car with your extra onions.” He gave a slight huff as he got out of the car.

“And I need to stretch otherwise I’ll suffer cramps and onions.” Angela got out of the car. As an afterthought, she poked her head back in and said, “You are evil Dean,” and gave a teasing grin. She shut the door of the Impala and rotated her shoulders to stretch them out. The walk would stretch out her legs some.

“Hey see if they got any pie,” Dean called out. As soon as Sam gave him the bitch face he said, “Bring me some pie.” Dean grinned as he watched Angela and Sam walk into the diner thinking about ways to tease her about wanting alone time with Sam though if it had been him going she would have gone anyway. Still it was fun to tease her though he did suspect that something was going on even though it was friendly conversation.

“You didn’t have come.”

“It’s no problem,” Angela replied, “I needed the stretch and I like ordering my own food. Besides I have an idea regarding Dean’s extra onions.”

Sam looked at Angela as a slow grin came across her face. She was up to something and she was dangling the line to see if he would bite. He took it. “Don’t tell me you plan on replacing those onions with something like radishes.”

“That’s kid’s play and you know it,” Angela replied as she pulled open the door of the diner. “I thought about that but then I thought about picking off the onions and make him think that he is eating onions and the odor will be eliminated. He’ll never know the difference.”

“Let me guess, you have something in your potion kit for that?”

“I may,” Angela dropped as a hint.  She gave a slight smile. “Think about it.”

Sam couldn’t help but chuckle. He was glad that she had gotten back into the mood of playing pranks on him and Dean. It was always interesting to see what she could come up with since she had a variety of sources to work with and she always seemed to play on their peeves. He considered her best still to be the one with the kachina. Dean still hadn’t figured that one out and it was highly unlikely that he would at this point. “Knock yourself out. It will certainly be a relief not to smell onions.”

Dean was watching the pair of them walk in when his attention was diverted to the copy of the Pickwick Papers that Angela bought. He had never heard of it and decided to take a look. Maybe he might try to figure out the cipher on his own. He glanced up to find no sign of Sam or Angela and his senses went on alert. Running inside the diner he found dead people and the remains of sulfur. There was no sign of either of them.


	2. Chapter 2

Angela stood facing Azazel with a look that could kill if it were all that possible. The demon merely grinned at her glad that he got under her skin. She was special. He knew from the moment he caught her scent. It became evident when she managed to open the gate that set him free, a feat that no one except someone like her could have done. He had chosen well.

He had watched her as she grew stronger. The pit made her stronger and then she found him or rather his mother. Azazel watched as she looked after them after he paid a visit that night in 1983. Always following and not even knowing why. It was a sweetness that couldn’t be compared to and then the time she spent with John… well that was rather heart wrenching considering how she looked like she wished to shield him from the whole deal. “Well I see you found a friend. This should make the game much more interesting.”

“I have no wish to play your game… Azazel.”

Azazel grinned and replied, “I’m afraid you have no choice and neither does your friend. I know that you know you have no means of getting out of here unless you play along.”

Angela felt the urge to leap forward and wipe that smile off the demon’s face or better yet, rip his head off. She still owed that feat on her list of things to do. Still when he mentioned that the kid was involved, she became more aware that she would have to play her cards right if she was to get to the bottom of this as well as keep the kid safe. “What do you mean play along and why involve the kid here?” She pointed at the boy who was looking like a frightened mouse but still looked at the demon. No way was she going to turn her back for one second.

Azazel relished this. He had spent years planning for this moment and he had been hunting for the others as well as one she would remember. All of it would go towards making her to what she was supposed to be… well at least what he wanted her to be. He replied, “You are a part of a special group of individuals. I believe you are familiar with them Angie. The ones that were most likely to be the malachi.”

Angela felt her breath hitch at the mention of that. She remembered that well and that was the reason she quarreled with her oldest and dearest friend. It was when ‘they’ decided on a contest to test for the one that was to wield the sword that would bring absolution. It was one of the worst moments she went through and left her distrusting of them. It also left her without her friend and started the whole thing towards the memories that she wished to lock away. She held in her temper as she glared at the demon.

Azazel watched as his special girl remembered. Oh yes and he knew what happened then. “I see you do remember. So you can see why you have little choice in the matter. Plus there is also the matter of someone near and dear to you. Tell me, how do you feel about the prize being Sam?”

“Eat me.” As soon as she said that, Angela regretted it. All that did was give the demon leverage to use against her. She thought she had gotten past this after leaving Tennessee. Apparently not and now the demon was going to screw with her.

Azazel laughed at her response. He had been expecting it. Clearly she cared but she didn’t understand why. He could also see that she regretted saying it but it wasn’t like he didn’t know. This would just make this game all the more better. “I see you’ve picked up some interesting vocabulary. Now that I have your attention…”

“What did you do with the Winchesters?” Since the demon mentioned Sam, Angela was determined to know if Dean was a part of this. Either way she was going to stick it to the demon if she could get the advantage.

“Only Sam is a part of this equation.”

Angela clenched her piece of wood tightly in her hands. She could feel one of the splinters cut into her hand as she clenched. The blood started oozing out and she felt it between her fingers. The scent didn’t bother her anymore. She had enough of people tormenting her about the boys especially Azazel and the hell bitch Lenya. She wanted to kill the demon but she had nothing but a hunk of wood… unless she made the necessary markings and adjustments…

“Look he has the ace. Let’s just go along for now,” the kid Al whispered in a frightened voice. He had seen how the woman reacted and he could see that she was ready to kill the creepy yellow eyed guy right then and there. He just wanted to get out of there and he figured she was the best way to get out of there. He had to try.

To Angela she would rather drain herself than play Azazel’s game. The last time she did that, she set him free. Now she had to send him back to the pit or kill him.  She could feel the rage build up and the desire to kill rise.

_Hey Angie, I know you have a lot on your plate but thanks for looking after Sam especially after that Frisco thing._

The memory struck a chord as she remembered a conversation she and Dean had while waiting for Sam at one of the stops they made. They had many moments like that and they were able to talk about things that should have been talked about but that memory. That told Angela that Dean was telling her how much he appreciated her help and asking if he could count on her. It wasn’t exactly a promise but it was something that she aimed to keep. She wouldn’t let Dean down. If Sam was involved, she would find a way to make sure the demon didn’t get his hands on him for Dean’s sake… and her own.

With the decision made, she loosened her grip and said, “Fine. I’ll play your game.”

Azazel grinned. He could tell that she was still waging an internal war in there somewhere but she was willing to play along even if for a little while. In the end she would be playing the game to its completion. “Good. I reckon you’re going to enjoy this if your recent escapade with those slayers was any indication.”

Angela ignored the jibe. No way was he going to use that to goad her. She replied, “More likely it will be entertaining for you.”

“Oh you’ve already provided good entertainment and you still have such potential.”

“Glad to be of service,” Angela retorted with the sarcasm thick in her voice. “What are the rules?”

“Rules?”

“Yeah the rules to your little game. You usually have them. It was how you got me the last time.”

 _She’s learned a lot since then. It’s why she’s my favorite._ Azazel continued to smile at his favorite girl. He replied, “Very well. The rules are simple. You must find Sam before time runs out for him. Oh and how you do that, you have to figure out yourself. Other than that, there are no rules except to survive whatever you find out there.”

To Angela it seemed pretty simple. That was how the ‘contest’ had been so that was something she could exert some control over. However the rule to survive was coming from a demon and that could mean anything. So that meant that she would have to be on her guard. The part about finding Sam had her confused. What the hell did that mean? Was Azazel trying to mess with her again? “What do you mean by finding Sam? I don’t even know where I am!”

If she had stopped to think about it, she would have seen that she had inadvertently made a rhyme. Azazel was amused as his yellow eyes flickered with the amusement. It was clear she had no idea what her potential was even if she had grown stronger within the last few centuries. He replied, “As I said, you must find Sam before his number is up unless he is able to survive himself. As to how you do it, you have to figure that out. Consider it a part of the game.”

 _Great. I have to find Sam but Yellow Eyes there thinks I have some secret way of doing it. What did I get myself into?_ Angela shook her head in agitation as she thought about the rules the demon was putting her under. She was surprised that she was exhibiting such control and that was in part because she was gripping her potential staff so tight that she was causing wounds in her hands. She glared at the demon and gritted her teeth. “And what am I to figure out?”

“Uh-uh,” Azazel raised his finger and waved it at Angela. “That would be violating the rules. If you don’t know, that’s your problem.”

“You really like sticking it to me don’t ya you yellow eyed bastard,” Angela replied feeling annoyed at the whole thing. She tightened her grip again squeezing out more blood from her hands. It seemed that she was destined to suffer cuts on her hands and wrists more often than other injuries.

“Whatever works. You know the rules. I suggest you get moving since it’s only a matter of time before Sammy gets into trouble.” Azazel grinned at Angela knowing that he had just secured her cooperation. Without saying anything further, the demon was gone leaving Angela standing there with the kid.

Angela scowled where Azazel was and focused on releasing the staff. She sighed and looked at her hunk of wood. Well if she had limited time, she was going to have to hurry but she sure as hell wasn’t going to go out there by herself without some besides her hands and her fists and not to mention her abilities. If she was correct and all she had to do was survive, then she could bet on the fact that Azazel would have surprises waiting for her. She reached into her pocket and found her knife and flipped it open. She sat on the ground and proceeded to trip off the excess wood to make it into a serviceable staff.

“You’re just going to sit there? What about your friend? Apparently that guy is going to do something to him.” Al was gesturing and speaking in a panicked tone. He couldn’t believe that this person agreed to play the psycho’s game and now was doing nothing.

“I am well aware of what the stakes are kid. I just don’t plan on going anywhere unarmed.” Angela didn’t bother looking at the kid as she scraped off the wood. “I know Sam is in trouble but he would kick my ass if I went in John Wayne. He knows I chew his and Dean’s ass off enough about that. So just relax and find something you can carry for a long walk.”

Al looked at the woman sitting on the ground working with the piece of wood. How could she be so calm? First he ended up out here in the middle of nowhere. A yellow eyed freak then tells them that they have to find some guy named Sam which obviously the woman knew and now she was just sitting there. It was like a bad dream but he did take her advice to look for something, preferably something he could swing and he found that with a nice branch that he could carry.

Angela for her part ignored the kid mostly because he was worrying to much about everything. He would be fine as long as he stayed by her and listened to what she had to say. She continued cutting the wood away in fast, even strokes. She noticed that her blood had stained the wood near the areas where she gripped it. It made for an interesting design though the idea that blood being used for paint had a slightly repulsive edge to it.

Shaking her head to clear it of those thoughts, she focused on her task of how she was going to get to Sam. She also wondered if he was all right where he was at and if Dean was okay too. The demon didn’t mention him but that didn’t mean that Dean was in the clear as far as being put through this whole game of Azazel’s. _Don’t worry Dean. I’ll find Sam and watch out for him until you find wherever the heck we are._

****

Finding Sam was the first thing on Dean’s mind and by extension Angela. When he found the sulfur on the door of the café, he went looking everywhere calling for Sam. When it became clear that his brother was gone, he let it out, “Sam!”

At one point he felt a little guilty over the fact that he hadn’t called out to Angela at all. Yet he got the feeling that she would have understood. She did explain that she valued the closeness he and Sam had and that she was envious. It was a little weird to him at first but she did say that she had no siblings and that it was just her so he was cool with that. The fact that she was missing too meant that something happened.

He was aware that for the briefest moment the illusion that demon had him under came true; that Angela really was working for the other side and that she finally made her move to hand Sam over to them. He couldn’t believe that though and wouldn’t believe it. He knew that it wasn’t so because of the way she looked after the both of them and she saved Sam. He had to have faith in her.

Feeling fear and anxious, Dean tried calling his brother first but got no signal. He then tried Angela and again the same thing. That only told Dean that they were both in trouble. So Dean did the only thing that he could do and that was to call Bobby. It was like waiting for an eternity until the grizzled hunter picked up the phone.

_Hello._

“Bobby… Angie and Sam are missing and no I’m not saying she ditched us. She wouldn’t do that. She really is missing.”

_Calm down, Dean. Tell me what happened._

Dean tried to calm down. His worry was mostly on Sam and it could have changed into panic. He ran a hand through his hair and filled Bobby in on everything that happened from the time that they arrived at the café until the time he went in there and found the sulfur everywhere. It was all in the details. At least that was what she said and that was when she first started teaching him how to work with the stuff in her kit. It also applied to cases since the first thing on any hunt was to know what you were going up against.

Bobby listened as Dean gave his account of what happened. It would serve to calm Dean down a bit and help him focus. He was worried for Sam and Angela. He considered the boys like his own sons even more so now that John was dead and as for Angela… he could admit that he had a soft spot for the girl. Hell he gave her a piece of his property to do what she wanted and she turned it into a training area and he let her plant an herb garden near his tool shed. Well the herb garden she asked if it was okay to put in boxes in her room but still…

He waited until Dean finished and said, “Dean, I’ll help you. We’ll get Sam back. We’ll get ‘em both back. Now we’ll meet up and figure out where to start looking for them.”

Dean gave a slight nod as he replied to Bobby and suggested a place to meet. He gave a parting and hung up. He had a long drive ahead of him but it wasn’t like he was going to follow speed limits anyway. He got into the driver seat of the Impala and paused for a moment and just placed his forehead against the steering wheel. “I wish you were here Angie and not missing. You would’ve been on the case. What am I talking about? You would be on the case no matter where you are.”

Dean sat back up and started the engine. “Do what you have to Angie. Ya hear? Do what you have to and get to Sam.” He then pulled out and headed towards the highway. He may have said it to no one in particular but he was sure that she heard him. Hell if he could make fun of her hearing, he could believe that she could hear it no matter where she was. He put his foot on the gas and sped down the highway.

****

The last thing that Sam remembered was being in that café with Angela and they were discussing a means of how to get rid of Dean’s onion breath. He was actually going to tell her to do it. An onion free car was certainly better than dealing with the smell. The next thing he knew was that he was lying on the ground outside in the middle of some town out in the middle of nowhere. He was startled by his surroundings as he looked around.

Standing up he could see that he was in some sort of ghost town or other and it appeared that he was alone. It was a feeling that would send anyone into panic mode but Sam kept his cool first trying his cell phone. It was first instinct to call Dean. Finding that there was no signal, he went about exploring the town trying to find any sense of where he was. He peered into buildings looking for any sign of something. When he heard a noise, he became alert and picked up something that could be used as a weapon. It was a surprise to find Andy who was freaking out and saying that he had just woken up in Frontierland.

Sam did his best to calm him down though it wasn’t actually comforting that his first two answers were ‘I don’t know.’ He began to develop suspicions now that Andy was here and tried to figure that out by asking him what was the last thing he remembered and when Andy mentioned sulfur, it had Sam thinking. There was sulfur when Ava had been taken and the presence of the stuff suggested demonic activity. The thought that Angela could sniff out which demon it was crossed his mind but the whole comment about her being a glorified bloodhound came to mind and besides he had some idea of what was going on. “Dean… Angie.”

“Your brother, is he here? And who is Angie?” Andy was still freaked out with everything going on but to hear that someone else was working with the Winchesters and a chick no less. In a way things were kind of looking up. He might be able to score with her… that is if Sam and Dean didn’t kick his ass for trying.

Sam realized he had no idea where they were. “I don’t know where they are. I don’t know if he’s… if she’s…” Not knowing about the two people that were closest to him was rather… He looked at Andy as if figuring out what to say next.

He was interrupted by a scream and rattling. Someone was screaming for help. As it turned out it was Ava locked in what could have been called a latrine. Sam was just as surprised as she was once he pried the locked door open. “Oh, my God. Sam.”

It was rather unsettling to find that there were others who had been dropped off at this place but it was another piece of the puzzle to figuring out what was going on. “Have you been here this whole time? Ava you have been missing for five months. My brother and I along with our friend Angie have been searching for you everywhere.”

“Okay, that’s impossible because I saw you two days ago.” Ava clearly thought that Sam was crazy since she was sure that it had only been two days.

“You didn’t. I’m sorry.” Sam went through a similar routine with Ava as he did with Andy with her asking him where they were and what was going on. At one point she went on about her fiancé and how he must be looking for her. Sam didn’t have the heart to tell at that moment that her fiancé was dead. For a moment he was reminded of a time when he and Dean pestered Angela the same way. He wondered how she put up with them when they started to panic and she remained so calm. It seemed that the shoe was on the other foot with this one and he had to be the calm one. The best he could do was to try to keep everyone’s head in the game. If she could do it… he could. “I know one thing though. I know what the three of us have in common.” When another voice sounded forth, Sam added, “Maybe more than three.” He then went in the direction of the voice.

They were joined by a soldier and a girl named Jake and Lily. They both were just as confused since the last place Lily remembered being in was San Diego and Jake said he was going to bed in Afghanistan. It was starting to add up a little to Sam now that there was more than he, Andy and Ava. He found himself doing a mental comparison to Angela. She probably would have had it figured out by now but she had a few things going for her like her sense of smell and not to mention her freaky sense of hearing. He had to lay out his ducks in a row. “Let me take a wild guess. You two are both 23?”

The look that the others gave confirmed his suspicions. They were all 23 and they all had abilities and it all started a little over a year ago. This was definitely Yellow Eyes at work. He gave his suspicions and he knew they knew what he was talking about. At least he wasn’t getting the incredulous looks from Ava and Andy since he had already met them and had this conversation before. The only looks he received were from Jack and Lily. He admitted to his visions along with Ava and Andy decided to regale them with what he had been doing with his abilities which would have been interesting at least to Dean but definitely not appropriate given the situation.

Unfortunately, Lily got upset telling everyone that her ability was that by touching someone their heart stopped and it led to tempers starting to rise. Lily wanted to go home and Jake started getting upset. Sam found himself again wondering how it was that Angela was able to keep him and Dean from getting at each other’s throats over stupid stuff. Of course the months they were separated didn’t exactly provide good examples but the times they did have together… He actually wished that she was there. She had a calming presence in almost any situation and gave the impression that no matter what happened everything would be all right. The same could be said for Dean. At least she knew what was going on and she could relate but since she wasn’t there it was up to him and he had to keep the situation calm so they could figure out what they were going to do. “Hey. Look, whether we like it or not, we’re all here. And so we all have to deal with this.”

“Who brought us here?” Andy asked looking a little more comfortable in Sam’s presence. With Sam in charge, it seemed to settle everything. After all Sam and Dean knew more about the psychic stuff and they had a friend who probably knew things too.

This was the kicker though trying to explain to them why things were happening to them and not to other people. Then again if Angela were there, she would have given it straight up and he would have had a heck of a time trying to explain her especially if she did something like show her teeth and lifting things that would take twenty guys to lift. It seemed though that her way was the best way to go granted that she would admit that her track record about being honest wasn’t exactly stellar. “It’s less of a who. It’s more of a what. It’s uh… It’s a demon.”

The faces were hardly encouraging but at least it was the truth. Sam inwardly gave a sheepish type of a sound. _I wonder how you manage to be that convincing or at least not get the look Angie._ That was a good question since she could be blunt in her delivery and still get people to believe every word she said and that was not because of her ability that was similar to Andy’s. Looking at the four other psychics looking at him, he realized that his work was going to be cut out for him. He gave a slight sigh as he thought, _Where are you Dean?_ Sam rubbed the back of his head as he got a strange nagging feeling at the back of his mind like he was forgetting something.


	3. Chapter 3

Ellen was wiping down the bar while glancing every minute or two at the phone. She had been waiting for the call for nearly two hours. It was one of the conditions or promises that she extracted from the girl just so she could make sure she was doing okay. Also Jo was supposed to call today so she was doubly antsy. She turned to look at the hunters that were minding their own business and then back to the bar she was wiping down. She could see Ash doing whatever he was doing and chugging a beer.

Deciding not to wait any longer, Ellen went to the phone and picked it up just as it rang. “Hello?”

_Hey Mom._

Ellen breathed a sigh of relief as she heard Jo’s voice on the other end, “Joanna Beth what do you thin you’re doing calling me this late?” She was smiling as she said it so it didn’t sound as stern.

_Very funny, Mom. I just got finished with a case and just got in. How’s the Roadhouse?_

“Everything’s fine,” Ellen replied giving a slight look.

_Not everything. I can tell. Is it Angie again? Mom you gotta be patient with her. What is that saying about an old dog?_

“I don’t think that applies Jo,” Ellen replied, “But I understand. Anyway besides hunting are you doing all right?”

_I’m doing fine Mom. Nothing much at the job but I did hear things about stuff happening. I was trying to get a hold of Angie since it would be something that she’d be interested in but all I got was her voicemail._

Ellen frowned. She knew Angela would sometimes let her voicemail pick up but she always returned the call. She replied, “Like you said about the old dog but I’ll try her and see if she picks up.”

_Thanks Mom. I’ll call later okay?_

“You just take care of yourself Jo. Don’t take any unnecessary chances.”

_I’ll be careful. Don’t worry about Angie too much. She’s like a cat. Always lands on her feet or more like has nine lives._

Ellen laughed as her daughter hung up. Jo was right that Angela could take care of herself. Hell the girl had been doing it long before she met her. It was just natural for Ellen to worry about her as much as she did for Jo considering that her daughter and Angela got along so well. One of her fondest memories was when Jo challenged her to a shooting match but not with the game but with live ammo. They spent hours at it with Angela looking bored and Jo getting frustrated until they both exploded in laughter.

There were other times when Angela dropped by that were just as good. Ellen remembered them fondly and it endeared the girl to her more. After that business with them slayer hunters, Ellen made Angela at least make a half hearted promise to call and say things were going well. She was glad that she was back with the boys. Ellen got the feeling that she was supposed to be watching their backs for what was to come. As she told the boys, the storm was coming and their side holds all the cards. It was rather crude but in essence, Angela was a trump card or rather the wild card.

“Hey Ellen, was that Angie?”

Ellen looked to see Ash standing at the bar holding a stack of papers. “No it was Jo. You got something?”

“Yeah but I’ll talk to her later. Maybe get a hold of Dean. This is big Ellen.” Ash walked away to his den leaving Ellen puzzled but then again this was Ash.

Still though, if it was big, then Angela had to know and Ellen knew she would fill in Sam and Dean on this. She picked up the phone and dialed the number that Angela gave her. The fact that it was ringing was a good sign. However it was not a good sign that it went to her voicemail.

_This is Angela. Leave a message._

As soon as the beep came on, Ellen launched into her mother mode, “Angie, I don’t care if you are on some case that involves life and death. You need to answer the phone when it rings. Isn’t that what you got that blue tooth thing for? Anyway, Ash has something for ya so ya better call him back…”

“Hey Ellen, you’re out of pretzels!”

Ellen turned towards the voice before turning back and finishing her message, “Call me back. I have to run out for some stuff but you know what number to call. Ya did promise me that you would. I worry about you honey.” Ellen hung up the phone and stared at it with a thoughtful expression on her face. No doubt Angela would listen to her voicemail eventually but there was something off about the whole thing. It was something to think about as Ellen grabbed her keys and went out the door. They just had to run out of pretzels. Well if Angela hadn’t called by the time she got back then she would know that something was up and she would call again and this time let the girl have it.

****

“Are you sure this is the way we’re supposed to go?”

Angela looked around the forest for any sign of danger. This was like the fourth time the kid asked her and she was becoming annoyed with it. Of course she was sure that this was the right way because the nagging at the back of her mind was most annoying in this direction… if that was anything to go by.

She had no idea how it came to be that she would follow that nagging feeling. She was just sitting, finishing the last shavings of her staff and thinking about where the boys were. She honed in on Sam since the demon said she was supposed to find him. Even though the demon didn’t mention Dean, she would operate under the assumption that Dean would be with Sam. As far as she was concerned the demon was messing with all three of them even though he seemed to be giving her special attention.

As soon as she focused on finding Sam, that was when that nagging feeling started. It was that feeling one got when they knew they were forgetting something but they couldn’t place it. She had that feeling before but this was slightly different and it was weird. At the same time she was running her thumb along the thin white scar on her palm.

She stood up and started looking around for a direction to follow. That nagging feeling acted like a homing beacon or something. It was weird. When she faced one direction, it became stronger and she stood frowning for the longest of time. It was still going strong and when she faced another direction, it was weak and when she turned back it went strong again. She frowned in confusion but it felt right. Maybe she was onto something.

Motioning to the kid she said, “This way.” Slipping her knife back into her pocket, she picked up her new staff and started forward. She was going to play this game out of reluctance but she had no choice at the moment. She held the staff like a walking stick and started in the direction she had chosen feeling like something out of a medieval novel or one of those cheap ass kung fu movies that she occasionally watched as a guilty pleasure.

Now she felt regret bringing the kid along since all he did was whimper and whine and she felt it wasn’t fair that he was dragged into this even if he was one of the ones that was supposedly like her in regards to _that_ thing. That was what bothered her the most and she felt for sure that Azazel was doing this just to torment her. At least it wasn’t the bitch Lenya. She replied. “I am sure this is the way.”

“How do you know? Are you a scout or something?”

Angela had no idea how to explain it. Why should she? The kid was scared enough as it was. She replied, “Eh, something like that. I grew up learning survival methods.”

Al relaxed somewhat as he followed the girl. She seemed to know what she was doing even though she was lost like he was. There was something about her that made her seem… safe didn’t seem like the right word to use but it seemed to fit. She was a face to be trusted and he was sure that this Sam guy she was supposed to find trusted her. He was just a smart jock studying for a law degree. “That’s good to know.”

“I get by. It’s part of my job.”

“What do you do? Take people on safaris or up Mt. Everest?”

Angela frowned a bit and turned to look at the kid. Did she actually look like an African explorer? She wondered if she was going insane herself. “No. I fix cars.” It was the same cover the boys used to describe the ‘family business’ and it would work for her since she knew a thing or two about cars. She turned back around and started following the tug while searching out for any signs of danger.

Al frowned as he followed. He had to run to catch up with the fast pace his companion set. “But I thought you said survival training was part of the job.”

“It is. If you don’t know how to find your way around in life, then how in the hell are you supposed to when working on a car?”

“Um I guess that makes sense though I would never peg you for a grease monkey.”

Angela gave a slight chuckle. “Few would.”

Suddenly there was a sound. The kid wouldn’t have been able to hear it but she sure did. Something was out there and judging from the sounds, there were quite a few of them. What kind of sick game was Azazel playing by sticking her out here with a defenseless kid? She motioned to the kid and said in a low voice, “Stay behind me. Don’t make a sound.” She twirled her staff into a basic defensive position. With both hands she could push it out to block anything from jumping at her body. Slowly she began to move in a circle to look around, listening and giving a tentative sniff.

Al felt his heart quicken when he saw her get quiet. When she motioned for him to move, he didn’t hesitate. He wasn’t going to argue since it was clear that she knew something was out there even if he couldn’t see it. He held up his tree branch like he would a bat and was ready to hit anything. He couldn’t help but ask, “What is out there?”

It was then Angela heard it. The low growl and the stench of death that clung to them so readily was right there and she smelt it. Suddenly there appeared two people but one look and a sniff told her that they were demons and the thing standing next to them… Oh crap.

Al saw the people emerged and he breathed a sigh of relief. He grinned at the girl and said, “Great more people.” He started forward but was held back by a firm grip. “What the hell?”

“Run.”

“What?”

Angela knew that she couldn’t hold back anything. She turned and shouted, “Run!”

Al couldn’t describe the feelings he felt when she turned to reveal a pair of glowing orbs and her voice becoming more commanding. What the hell was she? At that moment though he wasn’t going to find out for he found himself quickly obeying her order and turned to run. He ran in the direction they had come in not knowing where the hell to go. A glance back told him that the girl was behind him and she was glancing back before she veered off.

Angela knew she probably just began another game of twenty questions but she had to get the kid out of there. She took off after him and she could hear the barking as the hell bitch chased after them. It was followed by the two demons as they pursued them. She had to take the hell hound out first before the demons. The thing had their scent and would hound them until one of them was dead. Well she would give them a run for their money.

She made sure the kid had a head start before veering off and drawing the hell hound away. She could hear behind her and she risked a look. Man, were they ugly bitches. They looked worse than the demons in their true form. Judging that she was a good distance away, she deliberately slowed her pace to bring the thing in closer. She could hear the slobbering and the growling as it gained on her. The last time she did this, she was in a dress.

When the hell bitch was close enough, she whirled around and waited until it leaped at her. Swinging her staff, she cuffed it on the side of the head and sent it flying into a tree. A normal human would have seen her swing at nothing and thought she was crazy until they saw the tree suddenly cave from the force. Angela envied those humans but it did come in handy if she happened to have a gun around. Then she could kill with two well-placed shots to the head and the thing was down for the count.

The tree caved, cracked and then fell but the bitch wasn’t even down yet. It was only stunned and Angela watched as it staggered to its feet. Its movements were like regular dogs but Angela felt no pity for the pets of the demons. Well at least the ones that were bred to kill. She held her staff up as it looked at her and began to growl and circle her. It wasn’t going to be fooled a second time. It would be ready.

****

Al ran until he was out of breath. By then he felt totally lost and looked around helplessly. He heard crackling of the underbrush and panicked a little. He looked around and then paused as he stared up at the tree he had stopped next to. Maybe he could hide up there. Wasting no time, he started the long climb up the tree.

He made it to the first branch and sat on it and tried to make sense of what he had just seen. No this couldn’t be happening! Al tried to still his breathing and catch his breath. He almost held it when he heard the snap and crackle of some branches and saw the two people he had seen. He watched as they came to a stop under his branch and he held his breath.

Suddenly there was a loud howl that sounded close even though it was far away. Al looked in the direction of the sound as he heard, “It looks like Cerebus is having fun.”

 _Cerebus?_ Al frowned at the use of the name of the three headed dog that guarded the realm of Hades. _Who are these people? I didn’t see a third person._

“He has the scent. He will make the game interesting and fun.”

“What if she kills him? That was the prize bitch in the litter.”

“Bred for a single purpose: to play the game.”

“Azazel won’t like it if…”

“We are to play the game as we see fit. The only rules she has is to find the psychics particularly this Sam Winchester. How and why… we don’t ask questions. Rhagos did that and now he’s gone. Now the other one is still out there. We need to find him.”

“I love a good cat and mouse chase.”

Al watched as they walked away. He began to breathe a little easy once they were out of sight. It was short lived however when he turned to begin his climb down that he saw one of them standing on the branch. His eyes went wide in surprise and fear as the person smiled a menacing grin and the eyes turned to pitch black.

The guy standing on the branch was of medium build and looked fit and what a girl would call suave. He was the kind of guy that would look good on a magazine cover for some kind of expensive men’s cologne or something. He was dressed casually with a leather jacket and boots and looked as if he just won the lottery. “There you are. We were looking for you.”

Al lost his grip and slipped. He fell out of the tree bouncing along the trunk. It hurt going down and he hit the ground with a thud. He was lucky that nothing was serious… not even a broken bone. It still hurt though as he slowly pushed himself up. He became aware of a pair of feet that landed with a dull thud in front of him and he looked up. The guy said, “Such a clumsy little fool. It was rather a good plan to separate you two using Cerebus.”

The other one showed up with her blonde hair drawn back in a tight ponytail. She was dressed similarly to the guy and she cut a nice figure as she stood beside her partner. She gave a similar smile as she watched Al clamber to his feet and backed away. “Oh don’t be frightened. We don’t want to hurt you.”

“We only want to kill you and peel the flesh from your bones,” the other replied giving a slight laugh.

“And what about the girl?” Al asked the question while pointing in the general direction his companion had gone. “Why don’t you go play with her or something? I was just dropped off here. I don’t know anything.”

“So you say, pretty boy,” the girl said as her eyes went inky black. She stepped forward to take a good look at the kid. “We want our fun. Cerebus will have his with her while we have ours with you.” Then she suddenly struck with a hard backhand and sent Al flying back until he hit a tree. “Now it is time to play.”

****

It was like a game of getting the dog to focus on the stick as Angela attempted to throw the hell hound off balance so she could go in for the kill. This bitch was proving to be extremely difficult and wouldn’t take the bait. She had to kill this thing and then go find the kid and find a way to avoid the demons while searching for Sam. This was proving to be a taxing game and for Azazel it had only just begun.

The bitch suddenly gave a loud howl that was meant to freeze the bones of anyone who heard it. Angela gave a slight jump since it was grating on her nerves. That was a disadvantage of good hearing. You could pick up almost anything and the tolerance level for high pitched sounds ranged from okay to nonexistent. She didn’t break eye contact with the mutt and was ready when it lunged at her baring its teeth.

She let it collide with her and let its momentum push her to the ground while her staff held it at bay. She followed through by pushing up on the staff and sending the mutt flying through the air. It didn’t collide with anything having learned its lesson and skidded along the ground, the dirt trails becoming evident. The mutt was back on its feet quicker than before and started attacking again. Angela waited and took a swing with her staff and cuffed the mutt a good one.

When the bitch got back up, she knew that this was no ordinary hell hound. That blow she delivered was a killing blow. She knew because she had killed one before in a similar manner. This was something different and she knew that this was no time to start acting like a girl. Then again any hunter worth their salt knew that you didn’t mess with hell hounds. They could rip you to shreds and you would still be wondering where they heck they were by the time you bled out. Looking at this bitch though, it looked like the going was going to get ugly and worse. She could just hear Dean cussing at her for going kamikaze on them. _Well… ya do what ya have to._

The hound growled and prepared to charge. Angela held her staff ready while debating the choice that she was toying with. She was taking a serious risk and she couldn’t afford to be taken out of the game. Not with the need to find Sam before Azazel decided he was bored of playing around. She took a deep breath just as the mutt started to charge. It was like being stuck in slow motion as the mutt charged at her. At the last minute she dropped her staff and took the bitch head on.

It was like two giants colliding. Angela let the mutt push her back and she hit the ground hard. That was nothing though compared to the sharp and intense pain that followed. She couldn’t help but scream out loud.

****

Azazel sat pondering his next move. There were literally dozens of moves that he could do at this point and all would lead to the eventual outcome. Still it was always fun to contemplate which choice to make since the way to get to victory would change. That was why he loved drawn out plans that had everything click into place. Right now he had his king in one place and his queen in another.

“Patience is considered a virtue, Uncle.”

“It’s what makes us the best at what we do, Lenya,” Azazel replied as he contemplated his move. Finally he put his hand on a pawn and moved it forward. “Your move, love.”

Lenya studied the board and the move Azazel just made. It was somewhat of an irony or a contradiction that she and Uncle were a patient lot when it came to setting things in motion. The thrill of knowing what was going to happen because it was seen when contemplating a move was what kept her going as well as the results of the move. The challenge lay in the pieces that were on the board. She made her move. “So the pawns have moved forward.”

“And so has the queen,” Azazel replied studying the board. “Eventually she will make it to the halfway mark.”

A howl sounded forth and Lenya looked in the direction it came from. “Looks like the side castle is trying to take the queen.”

Azazel made his move, not bothering to look up. He replied, “Queen takes side castle and then the pawns.” He looked up at Lenya and grinned, “The queen is the most powerful piece on the board. You know that.” He gave a slow grin as he watched Lenya grow uncomfortable since he reminded her about her last altercation with the queen. It was important to pay attention to both sides of the board and predict which way your opponent was going to move.

Lenya gave a slight shuffle in her seat as she debated on her next move. She raised a hand and self-consciously fingered the small scar that was on her right cheek. The queen was a powerful piece in the game. It could move in any direction and that was what made it a dangerous piece. The best way to capture the queen was to trap it so she couldn’t move. That had been done before but not good enough. The queen had found a way out then.

Lenya made her decision and looked up at Azazel. She replied, “True but if you can effectively trap the queen, you can make her go where you want her to go.”

Azazel smiled in agreement. He had taught Lenya well and he knew that the queen was her favorite piece. The last time the queen had been pinned down effectively it left a mark on her and Lenya used every opportunity to exploit it. “Indeed. That is why I have the king in place too. It’s all part of a larger game Lenya.” He looked at the layout of the board. He could set a trap and she would never suspect. He moved a piece. “The king may be weak now but he has potential.”

Lenya frowned. “I have no doubt of that.”

Azazel couldn’t help but laugh at her. “Don’t worry about it my pet. Both pieces will not come out of this game unscathed.”

Then as if he had surely predicted it, there came another howl. Following that was a scream that would have chilled anyone to the bone. Lenya looked in that direction as if she could see at that distance. “It looks like the side castle took the queen.”

Azazel made his move and sat back and laughed. “No just pissed her off. Remember the queen has to get to the king… eventually.”


	4. Chapter 4

Sam paused a moment to look out at the landscape. He couldn’t quite tell what direction he was looking in but he got the feeling that he was supposed to look in that direction. Or at least acknowledge something in that direction. That nagging feeling that he felt earlier had gotten stronger as he looked in that direction. Why, he didn’t know.

For some reason, maybe a gut feeling, something was happening out there. It felt familiar like… It couldn’t be Dean because that was a different feeling. He always knew what it felt like when Dean was in trouble. This…

“Sam you okay?” Andy looked at Sam wondering what he was staring at. There was nothing out that way beyond the buildings except forest.

“Uh… yeah,” Sam replied and frowned slightly, “I think.”

“You having a vision?”

“No. More like a feeling.” Sam continued to frown and look back in that direction. “I don’t know. It’s like something bad happened out there.”

“Another psychic?” Andy was a little nervous that Sam seemed out of it but he was going to trust him on this. Sam knew more about what was going on than he did so he would do as he said. This though seemed different than what they were doing.

“I don’t know,” Sam replied. He suddenly felt something sharp shoot through that nagging feeling. He vigorously rubbed the back of his head and gave a slight hiss. Then he got a flash of bloody wrists. That was weird.

“Hey Sam, are you sure you’re okay?” Andy had seen everything that happened and he was worried that Sam was not okay. “Did you just have… a vision?”

Sam still rubbed the area at the back of his head. He had no idea what just happened. The nagging feeling was still there and he was confused. Then there was that image of bloody wrists. It seemed rather random. Then again the only time he saw wrists like that were his own and… “Angie?”

“Who? That friend of yours?” Andy tried to clarify. He was still coming out of the effects of his last bong.

Sam frowned as he thought about it and then looked out in the direction he had been. Was she…? No she would be with Dean and they would be doing what they had to do to find him. It wasn’t possible. Not unless he tapped into her abilities somehow. She did have something similar to Andy’s ability. He would need time to think about that but right now he had to keep everyone from freaking out and figure out a way to get out of there. He started pacing while trying to best explain about being chosen.

Andy wanted to ask question but he got the impression that Sam was deep in thought about what just happened. It also had to do with this Angie chick that he mentioned twice. Maybe Sam didn’t see it but Andy could see that he cared about her. After a while it seemed that Sam put his thoughts to the back burner but they were still on his mind because occasionally he would glance in the direction he had been staring at.

****

It was nice and warm. The kind of warm that was pleasant. There was no trace of harshness to it; almost like what a cat would feel lying out in the sun. There was the slight lapping of water like it was from a lake. Suddenly there was something cold and wet and smelly on her face…

Angela opened her eyes to see the sky above her and was aware of a slight burning sensation on her arm. Not far from her she heard a whining. In fact it was close to her head. She closed her eyes and remembered exactly how she had ended up in this position.

It had been a stupid thing to do but she had little choice. She charged the hell hound full on and took the brunt of the charge. Her goal was to break the bitch’s neck. However the teeth got in and sunk into her arm and she could feel them touch the bone. It was the most excruciating pain she had ever felt and her reaction was to pull out her knife and stab the bitch and throw it aside. She could also recall screaming because she couldn’t hold it in.

She must have passed out since she just opened her eyes to find that she was still alive. The bitch was also next to her moaning in pain. Her knife was buried to the hilt in the shoulder of the thing. Slowly sitting up, she winced at the pain in her arm. Looking at it, she had only one thought and that was that the boys were going to kill her for being stupid.

It was starting to heal but the teeth wounds were deep. The blood had stained the sleeve of her jacket and was pretty much torn. She sighed as she looked at it. She wasn’t going to exactly go and leave the jacket behind since this was a forest but she couldn’t leave her arm untreated either. This was the time for her survival training to kick in and for once she was grateful she could whip up a field dressing like lightning.

Slowly she removed the jacket. She was lucky that the wound was clean even for a hell bitch. Her flannel’s sleeve was rolled up to the elbow so it would do. With controlled strength, she ripped the sleeve off at the seams. Being quick and careful, she wrapped it tightly to withstand jarring as it healed but not so tight that it cut off circulation. After tying it off, she put her jacket back on. She looked like hell but hey…

The whining of the hell bitch caught her attention. She could see the thing lying near where her head had been. She realized that the mutt had licked her face to wake her up and she found that disturbing. She looked at her knife buried in the shoulder and at the face of the thing. It was rather pathetic and weird to look at such a face.

Sighing and thinking that she was going to regret this, she moved to her knees and looked at the wound. She might have cleaved into the muscle. Talking to the mutt she said, “Looks pretty bad. I don’t know what you want me to do about it. Normally I kill your kind.”

The hell hound whined. It was pathetic like a puppy that got kicked and it sort of reminded her of Sam when he pouted. She said she was immune to the puppy dog look but that wasn’t exactly true. She just had strong will. Angela sighed after hearing the whine. “Alright, alright, I can try something.”

Looking at the knife, she knew that she would have to just give it a good pull and it would come out. “This is going to hurt.” She curled the fingers of her good arm around the handle and using her other to brace herself, she gave a quick yank and the knife came out.

Hell hound blood was nasty. It was thick and black. Angela made a slight face at the sight of it as she peered at the wound. She did cleave the muscle of the shoulder and could tell that it would be fatalistic if she just left the thing there to die. She had one option that would most definitely work and she had used it three times in her life. It was taxing if she didn’t pace herself and she was injured. Looking at the pathetic look the hell hound was giving her she sighed knowing that she was going to regret it.

Placing her hands over the wound, she began muttering the words that encouraged her to use the one ability she hadn’t mentioned at all to either of the boys. Her reasons for it, she wasn’t sure. A white light emitted from her hands and hovered above the wound. Angela focused on the healing wound until it was completely closed. It was then that she backed off and sat back on her heels. She looked at the hell hound and said, “Alright I fixed ya. Are ya gonna rip me to shreds like you were told to do?” She looked at the thing warily.

The hell hound was still for a moment and then was suddenly on its feet. It turned to look at Angela and stared at her for the longest time. It gave a low growl as it looked at her and she stared back with a look that said to take the best shot. Angela was tired already but she didn’t have time for this. If the mutt wanted her dead then she would give a killing blow this time.

It was a complete surprise when the hell hound came forward and started licking her face. Angela scrunched her face due to the smell of the breath. This was just perfect. Now she had a pet hell hound. Oh yeah the boys were going to be thrilled about this. Hell Dean would probably try to shoot it on the spot. She tentatively put a hand on the head of the beast and said, “Alright, I get it that you’re thanking me. Now I gotta go and get the kid and go find Sam.”

Even though she was tired from the healing, she gathered it into her will by focusing on her goal and stood up while holding her arm. Once up, she carefully rotated it to test it. Satisfied that it wasn’t going to gush blood everywhere, she took off in the direction she had come from in order to back track and locate the kid. After going only a few feet, it was evident to her that the hell hound was following her. She turned to look at the hound and asked, “Why are you following me? You’re fixed. Go back to your master and pretend that you ate me or something.”

The hound cocked its head at her like a puppy would. Angela sighed in exasperation. Hell hounds never gave up once they caught the scent but this was way too weird even for her. She asked, “Are you going to follow me and not try to eat me?”

The hound, though ugly as hell, looked sort of cute wagging what she sure was a tail and gave a slight bark. It walked up to her and licked the hand on the bad arm. If that wasn’t an apology, she didn’t know what was in terms of creatures. “So does this mean you are… mine?”

It was disturbing to see the hell hound bounce around excitedly. She was glad it was invisible to humans otherwise they certainly would have looked freaked. She took it to mean that the hell hound decided to make her its master… or pet… or whatever. Angela looked at nothing in particular. _Oh boy. The boys are definitely going to throw me in the doghouse literally._ She looked back down at the hound knowing that she had no way out of this for now. Maybe it wouldn’t be too bad.

At that moment the kid Al came running out of the forest looking a little beat up but otherwise able to walk. He was frantically trying to catch his breath as he was trying to talk to her. “Thank God I found you. Those guys or whatever they were tried to kill me. I managed to get away and… and…”

“Calm down kid,” Angela replied as she placed a hand on the kid’s shoulder. She didn’t need him to get hysterical. He was fine and he escaped from the demons. Perhaps there was more to the kid than she thought. If he was supposed to be like her, he would have shown some indication like an unnatural talent for something.

It was something to think on but right now they needed to get moving. She had to get to Sam and maybe they would get there faster if her new “pet” could catch the scent. She would just have to make sure the thing didn’t go after Sam or any other psychics she may find like they were chew toys. She walked over to pick up her staff and concentrated, looking for the direction the nagging feeling was strongest. It was hard because she picked up the scent of the demons on the trail. They were injured but still moving so she search faster, looking and feeling like an idiot for spinning around.

Tuning out everything Angela managed to find it and motioned for the kid to follow. “Kid, this way.” She took off at a jog not waiting to see if the kid would follow since she was sure that he would. She gave a slight whistle out of habit to call for the hell hound to follow.

Al followed the girl scared but confident that she was leading them in the right direction. He just wanted to get to a phone and call home. He thought it odd that she whistled but the question was solved when he heard the patter of feet and the growl of a dog. He looked but nothing was there. He ran to catch up with her and asked, “Um is something following us?”

“Your demon friends.”

“No I mean something like a dog.”

Angela knew this was no time to be beat around the bush. She laid it out in a line, “Oh that’s a hell hound. Nasty thing and once they have your scent, they don’t give up until you are dead and hell’s bitch.”

Al began to freak out a little, “So that thing is going to… kill us?”

“No. The one following us is cool. It’s weird I know and I don’t get it myself and I’m sure Sam and Dean are going to be pissed that I have a hell hound for a pet. That’s what I get for falling for the look.”

“Why would they be pissed at you?”

“It’s unnatural to make friends with things that belong to hell.” It was the only explanation that Angela could come up with at the moment. Anything else would probably have the kid freak out more and she really didn’t want that. “I’ll deal with it when I get to that bridge. For the meantime the mutt will come in handy.”

The said mutt gave a bark startling Al since he couldn’t see anything. It sounded close so he moved a little closer to Angela. She chuckled, “Relax kid. I think he’s going to behave.”

****

Azazel studied the board. The queen had made a move and an unexpected result had occurred. It changed the game slightly but the overall picture was still there. The game could still be played to completion. Hell the queen still thought that there were others like her thrown into the mix. That was just a ruse because he knew the queen wouldn’t let them wander out there alone.

Since the game changed slightly, he could make some changes too. It was going to be so much fun. It became evident when he heard grunts and protests accompanied by Lenya’s bored yawning. He didn’t look up until after he made his move. “Ah Lenya. I see you managed to find them.”

“It wasn’t hard to find the knights. What of the side castle?”

“Side tracked,” Azazel replied. “An unexpected development. It seems the queen has gained a piece back to her side.”

“The queen is one of the more powerful pieces on the board.”

Azazel and Lenya both turned to the one who had spoken. Lenya was the one who walked up and gave a smack to the speaker’s face and said, “You will not speak unless spoken to. Otherwise your companion will suffer a fate far worse than death.”

Azazel grinned and said, “Now love, there’s no need to get violent. After all these two know the queen very well. Perhaps well enough to make the game interesting. What say you… Cadets Hickerson and Barcalow?”

JoAnne Hickerson glared at the demon full on and would have let loose the sarcasm that had made her famous among her classmates at the Point had she not been given a slight tap by David. They had been minding their own business and talking about the summer camp and leave when the bitch that nabbed them showed up. The next thing they knew they were here in the middle of the woods watching a guy play chess.

One look at the eyes and JoAnne could tell that he was a demon and was willing to bet that the bitch who slapped her was one too. It wasn’t difficult to figure out that they two of them were referring to someone even though they were codenamed by chess pieces. JoAnne played the game herself when she wasn’t doing cadet stuff. She once reduced the chess champion to tears when she played. She followed along easily and couldn’t help but make her comment because essentially it was true.

Now the yellow eyed demon was saying that the queen knew who they were and JoAnne was willing to bet that they knew the queen too. The question was just exactly who was it? The demon wanted them to play some sort of game and present a challenge to the queen. JoAnne wasn’t going to let anyone make her into a pawn for some sick game. She replied, “I wouldn’t let a hell hound possess me.”

“Not exactly what I had in mind and even if it were possible, no.” Azazel liked these humans. If it were possible he would get all of those that the queen had met within this lifetime he would use them. The past always had a way of opening old wounds. “What I have in mind is for the two of you to do something for me and you might be able to help a friend of yours.”

“No sale,” JoAnne replied. “We don’t make deals with demons.”

“A very good lesson to learn little girl but in this game you have little to no choice,” Azazel replied with a grin on his face. “You see you have two options. The first is that you try to take out the queen in this game. I’m sure your military training will be excellent for that. Or I could send you to a small town and all you have to do is protect one person.”

JoAnne looked David and they exchanged looks. The latter seemed like a better deal since they didn’t want to go up a potential friend and protecting someone wasn’t that bad. However this was a demon they were dealing with. There had to be a catch. JoAnne waited until David gave her a slight nod and she turned back towards Azazel, “What’s the catch?”

“That little thing you do is rather cute,” Azazel replied deliberately avoiding having to answer the question. He wanted to see if he could make these newest pieces break under the strain. It would take a while since they seemed to have good discipline brought on by being military. It could prove to be amusing. Seeing that he wasn’t going to get a reaction he gave in, “Alright there is a catch as you might say. If you choose to protect the one person, you’re going to have to deal with the others that are in the same boat and they may not be so nice with their abilities.”

JoAnne didn’t flinch but this sounded awfully familiar. She remembered when she had been given leave to visit with her mother when she came to the Point that her mother talked about kids with abilities. Was this demon involved? She asked, “If we were to choose the latter, who would be the person we have to protect and would you tell us who your queen is?”

“I might be inclined to tell you who the king is. After all the queen is trying to get to the king but the queen does need some challenges along the way. It only makes her stronger for the finale.”

 _So that was what the game was all about. Torturing two people by having one find the other and the other is surrounded with others like him and they might try to kill him._ JoAnne’s mind went through a flurry of thoughts. She had only been hunting for a short time and it was mostly salt and burns at the Point. David joined in when he caught her sneaking out and since then they had been doing the job in between school and training and everything else. She told him that he didn’t have to but he said that he wanted to. “So it’s all a game to you then?”

“It is a game with a purpose.” Azazel was impressed with the chosen knights. They had kept their cool despite the fact that either he or Lenya could snap their necks like twigs and leave them by the side of the road. They were perfect knights indeed and he knew they wouldn’t turn on friends but he still had to get them in the game. “Alright, if you were to choose option two, the king is Sam Winchester.”

“Meaning the queen is Angela,” JoAnne confirmed. “So either way we are going against friends.”

“Put that way and you make it sound so cold,” Azazel replied. “There is no doubt that the queen will make it to the king. It is just the matter of what happens in the meantime. Sammy is with others like him but some are a bit more… talented than he is and he could end up losing.” Azazel gave a slight movement of his head to try and get the cadets to bite.

JoAnne looked at David. She said to him, “Kobiashi Maru scenario at its worst.”

“I’ll agree to that,” David replied. He trusted JoAnne’s judgment on this and from his experiences in their extracurricular activities, this was not looking good. They would have to devise a means of trying to help both of them. The conversation they were having was in code, something that they developed in order to convey intentions without eavesdroppers. The Star Trek references were from JoAnne’s guilty pleasure. Other stuff was a mixture of movie lines and commands but understood by both. “The neutral zone seems to have a bind; a no win. The Borg are after Genesis and the Enterprise might not get there in time.”

“Sounds about right. Resistance is futile at this point.”

“Unless a split decision is made.”

“The Delta Quadrant is unknown territory. Multiple bogeys.”

“Bank left then.”

“Hit the brakes then?”

“Invert. Maybe flip the bird.”

Azazel watched as the two cadets conversed. What they were speaking sounded like nonsense but he had to admit that it was smart of them to talk in a way that wasn’t easily understood. He could tell that Lenya was getting impatient with the whole thing. He was too but he had spent too long on choosing his pieces to throw them away because of a couple of unexpected details that he may have missed. “The longer you two discuss this, the more likely that either choice becomes dead.”

“He’s switching to sidewinders,” David muttered.

“Copy that. Could be JOC is relayed,” JoAnne replied. She was telling David what she suspected of the demon’s operations. It seemed that he sent orders and possibly relayed to the intended parties. It could be an advantage to work with but they still needed to decide what to do. “The yeti problem is still active.”

David couldn’t help but snort at JoAnne’s nickname for Sam Winchester. He had to admit that she was right since the guy was pretty tall. Plus the guy had a brother and probably he was doing what the demon was offering for them to do. “Sibling rivalry.”

JoAnne nodded. She remembered Dean Winchester very well. He was an incorrigible flirt but he was better at it than some of the guys that regularly hit on her. David never tried though and for his own reasons. What David was telling her was that Dean could be in the picture and more likely on the trail of Sam. Perhaps they should focus on getting to Angela and maybe figure out how to get the queen to the king faster. “Angels in the outfield?”

David gave a nod, “Best bet.”

JoAnne gave a slight nod and turned back to the demon that had a cross between looking amused and confused. It seemed that even the demons didn’t know all the references of pop culture and military culture. Hell not many of the cadets at the Point could follow even when they used army commands. It’s what made hunting with David fun. Right now though she needed to give an answer, “We’ll take the queen.”

If Azazel was surprised, he was good at not showing it. He expected the knights to split up but it looks like they wanted to try two on one. That was fine with him. He had played the game many times over and it looked like this game was going to be better than the last. “Good choice. Of course you are going to have to make some attempt on her life or at least threaten the thing that is dearest to her. It’s the only way that I’ll let you play the game.”

JoAnne knew there had to be a catch to this. Still they made the choice. She and David could work out the details while they were hunting so to speak. She gave a slight nod towards David and replied, “Fine. We know how to take down her kind.”


	5. Chapter 5

Dean never thought that he would so relieved to see Bobby and one of his beat up junkers. Ever since Dad died, the grizzled hunter had been there as someone to lean on and go to whenever there was a problem. Bobby wasn’t taking Dad’s place but the old man was every bit like a father in his own way. Then Angie came in and it was like having a mother and father.

Dean paused a moment as he thought that over. It was true that Angela mothered him and Sam and even started spoiling them with her cooking. Hell she even did his and Sam’s laundry and took over the housekeeping at Bobby’s and she still had the energy to go on hunts with them. She even watched out for them and when the shit started to hit the fan, she would willingly jump in with two feet and never look back.

Dean knew that she did it for the sake of his and Sam’s relationship. He found it rather strange that she would do so much for something like that and he probably would never understand it completely but he respected it. She was there even when they weren’t speaking to each other. He was sure of it since she never denied it. So it was like having a mother but not. He wasn’t sure what to call it but he knew that she was a part of the team. That was one of the reasons why he knew she didn’t ditch him and Sam. He was sure that whatever took Sam took her too.

Dean greeted Bobby with a man hug as he called it. “Glad to see you Bobby.”

Bobby returned the hug knowing that it went a long way to reassure the younger hunter. He was worried too but he figured that Dean would need a cooler head around just to keep the bus on the road. The many bumps it was going to hit was only going to agitate Dean so a steady driver was needed. Unfortunately the news he had wasn’t good. “I want to find them both as much as you do.”

“I know and thanks,” Dean replied. “Tell me that you found something. Anything, even a hint.” It sounded desperate and pleading but Dean didn’t care.

Bobby pulled out a map and put it on the Impala. “Here: this is everything on all the demonic activity and omens recently.”

Dean peered at the map and thought that there must be some mistake. “There’s nothing on here Bobby.”

“My point exactly. There has been zero activity.”

“Come on, Bobby. This is Sam and Angie we are talking about.” Dean couldn’t believe this. It was like the demons were taking a vacation or something. It was hard to believe that there had been zero activity. He put a fist to his forehead to think. “Damn.”

Bobby knew that Dean was agitated and it probably wasn’t wise to try to calm him down but from the looks of things, he needed it. The past few months had been one hell of a rollercoaster and probably more or less rocky than when John died. First there was the separation after Hudson and he had lost “puppies” showing up at his doorstep and one stayed though he rather insisted on it. Then there was that slayer business which thankfully righted the rollercoaster.

Bobby could understand what Dean was going through since he had pretty much seen and raised the boys. Angela was the fixer as he saw it. She would rather fix things without a word of thanks and with a strange sense of reasoning and the way she carried on her relationships… He put a hand on Dean’s shoulder and said, “Hey, we’ll find them. If anything Angie will be the one making sure Sam doesn’t do anything stupid.”

Dean couldn’t help but chuckle at that. That much was true. When Sam was back on his feet after being poisoned, she didn’t bother cussing him out. She gave him a head smack to the back of the head and the look on Sam’s face was priceless. His brother of course had to ask her what that was for and her response had him laughing and Sam giving that sheepish grin. She would keep Sam out of trouble. It helped a little. He just couldn’t help but worry since this was his little brother.

_I would be surprised if you didn’t worry. He’s your brother._

_Right you are Angie_ , Dean thought to himself as he remembered something she said during one of their lessons in her herb garden. “You know you’re right Bobby but if I didn’t worry, I wouldn’t be much of a brother.” He turned to study the map again when his phone rang.

As it turned out it was Ash. The news wasn’t pleasant since Ash didn’t have anything on Sam or Angela. On the way to meet Bobby, Dean called Ash and told him that Sam and Angela were missing and asked if he could do anything to try and find them. It wasn’t surprising that Ash would agree. What was surprising was the fervor behind agreeing to it. It was barely noticeable but Dean could pick it up and wondered if he had been hanging around Angela for too long if he was picking up things like that. He could only guess that it had to do with Angela. _Dang girl. What is it about you that has people just, I don’t know, like you?_

It was by accident that Dean found out that Angela also knew Ellen. He happened to overhear a phone conversation she was having and heard Angela call the person on the other end Ellen. The tone of voice was surprising since Ellen wasn’t a gal that you messed with. The thought that Angela grew a pair when he wasn’t looking flitted across his brain and was just as absurd as it sounded. Dean never mentioned it and allowed it to be just a ‘friend’ that she was calling.

The other thing about Ash’s phone call was that he sounded a little agitated. As it turned out it was something important. Ash kept mentioning that it was something big but wouldn’t elaborate. He told Dean that he was to come over right away to the Roadhouse. Dean was a little perplexed over this since Ash was being so secretive but it was urgent and hell, if it was one step closer to finding Sam and Angela, then he was going to go for it. He told Bobby that Ash wanted them to go to the Roadhouse.

“Alright let’s go then. We’re burning daylight.”

Dean paused a moment before getting into the Impala to head to the Roadhouse. It was like he may have forgotten something but brushed it off as he turned the key and took off with Bobby sitting in the passenger seat. As he drove he began to focus on the task of finding Sam. He realized that he had been panicking a little while ago since hell it was his baby brother that he was talking about.

_Little Dean the overprotective bulldog. Once he bites, he doesn’t let go._

Dean gave a slight smile. Anyone would have been miffed at that description but Angela had made it sound admirable. It was funny how snippets of past conversations kept popping up. They served as better fare for helping him to focus in this and maybe she did know him and Sam better than he thought especially since she did know Dad well enough; at least well enough for her to share what they did on hunts that they did work together.

_It was always about Yellow Eyes, Dean. We both were following the same clues and sometimes different ones. Whatever I found, he was quick to jump on. The only thing that I learned out of the whole experience was that it seemed like part of a larger plan. The demon is a lot smarter than I think we ever gave him credit for._

“But you’re just as good at planning too, Angie,” Dean muttered. “Maybe you were onto something doing whatever you were doing in your free time.” He happened to glance over and noticed her copy of Pickwick Papers was still on the seat. He wondered if she found anything within those pages that was worth her getting taken as well. Maybe Ash can work some Dr. Badass mojo and figure it out.

****

Ash glanced anxiously at his watch after hanging up the phone urging Dean to get his ass down to the Roadhouse. After a few moments he picked up the phone again and tried Angela’s number on a wild shot.

_Hello?_

Ash was surprised that she picked up. There was a bit of static and probably from her end but it was her voice. “Angie, where the hell are you? Dean’s been looking for you everywhere.”

_I don’t know where I am. And what’s this about Dean? Did he do something stupid?_

Ash made a slight face. As usual Angela was worrying about somebody else rather than herself. He replied, “Just jumping down everyone’s throats looking for you and Sam. Is Sam with you?”

_… No… Ash… demon… something… psychics… find Sam…_

Ash pressed his ear to the receiver of the phone as if it would make everything clearer. She was breaking up fast. “Angie, you’re breaking up. Listen I found something big, smoking big. I’ll try to find you. Just hang tight.”

_… Ash... help Dean… find Sam…_

The line went dead. That could mean that Angela was in a place with demon activity or some place that had limited reception. It was anything but normal. Ash hung up the phone and looked around. Ellen was still out buying pretzels and whatever else that the place may need. Ash looked at his watch again at the time.

It then hit him that maybe he could try to locate Angela through her phone signal. True the conversation hadn’t been long enough but still… She did call him Dr. Badass and with more enthusiasm than Sam or Dean. She said she appreciated genius in all forms. He could do this.

He quickly grabbed his laptop, the new one that she hooked him up with and started to work his mojo while watching the bar. It helped to dispel some of the tension while waiting for Dean to show up. He pulled up his trusty program and began by inputting Angela’s cell number. It was child’s play since cops used something similar when tracing phone records. All he had to do was use Angela’s number and…

The results had him frown slightly. This couldn’t be right. As far as he knew there was nothing in terms of things like cell towers out that way and that area had history. Then again it seemed like the place given the big stuff he had found out. It was just like Angela to get mixed up in something so big that she had no idea how deep it was. For now she was in the general area of a place that was said to be so haunted that every single living resident fled or something like that.

It was strange that she didn’t even know she was actually there. Maybe she was in the woods somewhere and had no idea how close or far she was. Sam wasn’t with her so he must be in a different location and maybe even in the town itself. Then it occurred to him that was what he was looking at when Dean asked him to find Sam.

The big thing he found had to do with a very famous hunter which was why he wanted Angela to hear this. More likely she might have met the guy when he was around. She would know and probably connect the dots faster than the fastest microprocessor in existence. Brains and beauty was Angela and any guy who tried to bite was chewed and spat back out.

Ash studied the map that his scans gave him. Even though he found where her signal generated from and he was able to limit it down to the general area, it would probably help if he had something more concrete to present Dean when he finally got there. There was one option and Ash pondered over the morality of using it. It was her secret after all and she should be the one to tell the guys but this was urgent.

It was a suggestion that Angela gave Ash when he was doing something for her and that was before she hooked up with the Winchesters. She had asked if there was a way to track specific individuals by focusing on their energies. At first he thought she was nuts but when she postulated that certain individuals produced certain changes in the natural energies and whole bunch of other stuff and more on spirit energy, he took the bait and went to work on it. It was like looking at New York from the air with all the results and came out better than the standard methods of tracking omens.

When Ash asked Angela how she figured it out all she said was that it was following the old fashioned way and didn’t say more. Since then he tried it once to find her to see if it would work on her kind and to use as a comparison he used another hunter who was like her. What he found was surprising in of itself. The results were good and he did a retest just to make sure that the equipment was working and it was. He didn’t even think it was possible.

Compared to the other Halfling, her spirit energy registered at a different level. It was almost as if it were way older than what she professed her age to be which was impossible since he actually did some digging and learned she was born in the 15th century. He even compared it to other beings like demons and the like and it was something else. It was a discovery that he kept a secret since he figured that if everyone knew, they would be hounding her. So he erased everything.

Now he was going to do it again but he wasn’t going to save anything. He knew what to look for and would be able to tell Dean where to find her and she could do whatever she did to find Sam. He started the program works and concentrated on the area that Angela’s cell phone picked up on. He was close. He knew it.

Suddenly the lights started flickering but Ash didn’t notice it. It was when his computer screen flickered that it caught his attention. It started getting glitchy like a bad TV and it put Ash’s senses on alert. It was a brand new unit and it shouldn’t be doing that crap. The first this that came to mind was demonic activity. Ash looked around to see if anything else was unusual as he picked up the phone. He held it up to his ear and heard nothing.

There was no dial tone, not even the operator saying that the number was no longer in service or some other shit like that. Looking at the computer he saw the screen was flickering as if it were trying to right itself. Suddenly the screen went blank and the only that was on was a blinking cursor. Ash hung up the phone and went to look at it as the cursor continued to blink. Suddenly the word went dark in a flash of light and fire.

****

Lenya stood watching the crummy dilapidated joke of a bar burn. She would wait until it was completely burned to the ground before reporting her move back to Uncle. She was sent to take out the queen’s side castle when Uncle made the discovery that someone had been snooping into his game. He didn’t like that at all and asked if she could take care of it.

Of course she would since she wanted this game to play out with as little interference as possible and Uncle always made the game interesting. She went to the side castle and staked out a watch for a short time.

To her the place was a dump. Then again most roadside dives usually were and this dump just happened to be a place that catered to the boys and their toys. Lenya did have to admit though that some of the hunters weren’t bad at their jobs. Currently her favorites were the brothers Winchester. They never failed to get her excited over a game to play. The last game really had little Deanie so twisted that he actually kicked little sister off the team.

Lenya kept a low profile since then to watch little sister and what she did. It surprised her that she didn’t even try to beg Deanie to come back. She would have thought little sister would have stooped that low because of her promise to watch out for the boys and she was big on keeping her word. Little sister always kept it no matter what and that made her somewhat boring but Uncle said that because she tried to keep her word, it made it all the more fun to try and get her to break it.

Then there was how little sister acted around the boys when they were together. Deanie became the brother to her and Sammy… It was hard to tell. Uncle knew things but didn’t always tell her so she pouted when she didn’t know. However Uncle promised that she would find out all in due time so she had something to look forward to. To speculate was fun since she was sure that there was an uncharted territory between Sammy and little sister and neither was willing to cross it or they didn’t know that it existed. Maybe that was what Uncle wanted to see as well with this game by making the queen find the king.

Lenya did have to admit that she wanted little sister to find the king. She had watched the entire fight with the mistake that had been allowed to live simply because Uncle said they were one of the many little games to prepare the queen for the showdown game. She had to admit that watching little sister take out her former protégés and their newest members was a sight to see since little sister had a bleeding heart for humans.

It was interesting how she reacted when the leader made threats against Sammy. That was what prompted Lenya to think about the connection between the two. Of course little sister was always impulsive when it came to things that she considered hers which were few. She certainly knew how to change the rules when it came to combat. Lenya reached up and slowly fingered the short scar again. The night she received that scar was the first time that Lenya saw a little of what Uncle had seen in little sister.

Lenya would never admit it to anyone but at that moment she felt afraid. She was afraid that little sister wouldn’t show any mercy like she always did and go right for the throat. It also turned to anger because her beautiful face was ruined by that infernal blade little sister always carried when on a job. Lenya would admit that she was a bit vain about her looks but with good reason. Her meat suit was not one of the living meat bags the others liked to use. This one was her meat before she became what she was. Now it was marred but it served a purpose, a reminder that she still had unfinished with little sister.

The nice was that for this game little sister didn’t have her blade. Uncle made sure that the queen was put into place with nothing but what was in her pockets. Knowing little sister, that could be anything from a stick of that nasty stuff called chewing gum to a paper clip. It would be amusing to see what was stashed in those pockets but right now Lenya had a job to do.

Earlier Lenya found out that the owner of the side castle was not in after making a discreet phone call. The person who did pick up sounded like he was a little stoned but fairly coherent. Lenya briefly wondered if little sister’s standards, as far as humans and hunters went, had dropped ten points. Then again it was little sister and she did tend to see things that others couldn’t. Another thing that made her special to Uncle.

Anyway the guy also sounded slightly agitated and Lenya narrowed her eyes as she replied her thanks. She then sent in one of her pawns to go into the side castle and scope out a few things. She warned him not to make himself known and to avoid taking anything from a hunter. They would probably sneak in salt or holy water into whatever they handed him and that would blow his cover quick. What she wanted was to make the maximum amount of damage and to really sink Deanie’s boat a little more.

“The owner is still not back yet.”

Lenya continued to watch the side castle. “That is nothing to worry about. Is the boy still in there?”

“The one with the ridiculous long hair? Yes and highly agitated. It seems that he knows things that he shouldn’t. Do you want me to take him out now?”

Lenya looked up as if she were tasting something delicious. She could take him out now and alone and that could put a bind in things. Hell she could just imagine inflicting a cut here and a cut there and slowly peeling the flesh back layer by layer, exposing the muscles and then the tendons… all the way down to the raw bone. It would be like being back in Daddy’s little corner of the pit. Yet Lenya felt that it wasn’t enough. She wanted something more elaborate and Uncle did say that she was to take it out so… She had an idea. “What was he doing?”

“He was talking to some guy on the phone. Telling him to get his ass down here and that he couldn’t tell him what was important over the phone.” The pawn brushed himself off. “The stinking meat bumped into me.”

“It’s no matter since things will be dealt with now,” Lenya replied. “It seems though that this one is very good. He must’ve found out what Uncle intends to do after this game. If that is the case then we can’t afford to wait for the owner of this dump. Be prepared.”

“Yes my lady. What are you going to do?”

Lenya pulled out a cell phone from her pocket and held it in her hand and glanced at the key pad. This was going to be rich. How she got the number was a trade secret but the result will be the same once she revealed the game plan as far as she wanted. She dialed the number and held it up to her ear and waited for it to be picked up.

_Hello?_

“Still looking for your little brother?” Lenya smiled as she said it. The resulting growling and the barrage of threats made her start laughing. “My, my, what a foul mouth you have Deanie. It makes me wonder how little sister puts up with you and even more so why she sticks around.”

_You don’t know anything. What do you want bitch?_

“I know you are searching for little Sammy and you are using everything you can think of now that little sister isn’t there to hold your hand.” Lenya had no doubt that Dean would make the connection sooner or later as to whom she was referring to.

_Where is Sam?_

“And you don’t even ask about little sister? Is that fence truly mended or are you just using her like a glorified hound to protect your little brother?”

_Where are they?_

Lenya could hear the fluctuations in Dean’s voice. _Oh little sister you have them ensnared. Sammy was easy and Dean just hides it._ “Oh you’ll find out soon enough but I imagine things are going to be difficult along the way. Isn’t that what is called the famous Winchester luck? I think your father coined it to little sister.”

_What do you want?_

Lenya could hear the controlled tone of voice of Dean’s as he asked the question. He was going to play along for now. He knew when to push to get what he wanted. She might be kind to him in the end and give a hint about what she was going to do. She replied, “I want nothing except a good show from all the players involved in this game. The queen tries to make it to the king and the bishops are running around trying to reach the queen’s side castle…”

_Cut the bull crap. I get that you know something I don’t whoever the hell you are and if I have to guess, you’re one of the hell bitches that Angie knows. You better be glad that it’s not me that’s after ya. She’ll gank your ass and I’ll be around to see it._

Lenya had no doubt that Dean will eventually see her and little sister have fun. That was a day coming but not anytime soon. At least she held the cards that Uncle allowed her to play with. “Big words for a meat suit Deanie. I would love to see that in person. Perhaps I might when you get to the queen’s side castle and find the home fires still burning. It could prove to be a dead end.” Lenya then disconnected the line. She put the phone back into her pocket and looked at the side castle. She gave a slow and calculating grin as it suddenly got extremely warm…


	6. Chapter 6

Angela had been keeping a fairly easy pace so the kid could keep up. After being sidetracked by a couple of demons and a hell hound who ended being her new pet for some odd reason, she was ready to just continue running through the forest, find Sam and make sure he and Dean were safe and then kick the living shit out of Azazel. Well the last thing she was willing to let Dean and Sam in on it since Azazel equally screwed with them.

They had been at it for some time when Al called out and asked, “Any idea how much further?”

Angela had no clue. All she was sure of was that she was to follow the nagging feeling. She couldn’t explain why following it was the right thing but if she looked at it logically, she could say that when she focused on Sam, that was when it started. So barring any idea that Azazel may be messing with her again, it was a sure bet that it was connected to her mental powers.

The thing was she never used her compulsion power on either of the boys. She wouldn’t ever do it unless she had to and that would be under extreme circumstances. Then she remembered that she did use it once but it was only to ‘talk’ to the person that she was helping. She then stopped and gave her head a smack with her palm but it ended up being the one that her hell pet had bitten through.

She regretted the action and winced from the throbbing in her arm. She lifted her arm gingerly and shrugged off her jacket. She undid the bandage and inspected the wound. The jarring opened it slightly and it was starting to ooze blood. It wasn’t that bad but she didn’t have a whole lot of blood to lose and still be functional and she was not going to do the unthinkable.

“That looks bad.”

Angela looked at the kid as she wound her bandage back over it and tied it off. She put her jacket back on slowly. “It’ll be fine.”

“No it really looks bad,” Al countered. “It’s bleeding.”

“No shit kid,” Angela retorted as she finished putting her jacket on. “Look. I don’t have much time. I have to find Sam before Azazel begins his fun. Now I suggest that if you want to stay alive and go home, you stick with me and do what I say. Okay?” She rotated her arm to make sure that the bindings weren’t too tight. She had a lot of ground to cover and she couldn’t risk anything else going wrong. Even with her rapid healing, her body was still human.

Al wasn’t so sure. Now that he saw that she was injured, he had doubts that everything was all right. It could be that she was developing a fever or something. He had seen it in the movies. Untreated wounds could turn into sepsis and illness and the person could die. “Wait you really should take care of that. It could get worse…”

“It is fine,” Angela replied. She could tell that the gouges that had been made on the bone were healed and the tendons were healing. It was going to be a slow job. After all, stabbings took more time than broken bones even with healing wards. “It will stop because I have it tightly bandaged. We can’t do much out here.”

When the kid’s face failed to change, Angela shrugged her shoulders and turned away in exasperation. She wasn’t going to get anywhere with a frightened kid but she needed to get going. She needed something like a reassurance or someone to talk to. She turned to try again when the strangest thing happened. Her phone began to ring. Frowning she pulled it out of her pocket and looked at the caller ID. She frowned in surprise and slowly pushed the receiving button and put it to her ear. “Hello?”

_Angie, where the hell are you? Dean’s been looking for you everywhere._

Angela couldn’t believe it. It was Ash though it was a bit staticky. It didn’t sound good and she probably only had a few minutes. And what was it about Dean? Was he in trouble too? “I don’t know where I am. And what’s this about Dean? Did he do something stupid?”

_Just jumping down everyone’s throats looking for you and Sam. Is Sam with you?_

The static was annoying but at least she could hear Dr. Badass. She replied, “No. Ash, listen to me. The demon has done something to the psychics. I have to find Sam.” The static increased and she added, “Ash?”

_Angie, you’re breaking up. Listen I found something big, smoking big. I’ll try to find you. Just hang tight._

Angela held the phone and practically shouted, “Ash, don’t worry about me. Help Dean and find Sam.” Then the line went dead and the no signal sound went on. “Damn!”

Just for a moment she was connected to the outside world. How or why she didn’t care at the moment. Ash would let Dean know that she was fine and that he should concentrate on finding Sam. That would even things up a bit and maybe even leading to them beating Azazel at his own game. Now that was a relief to some degree. Now she could concentrate on the idea that she had before she agitated her injury.

If she was going to try to ‘talk’ to another mind, it would have to be to someone she had made contact with before or someone equally sensitive. If she could recall, she had two choices. One would be easier than the other but was it really worth it digging up that potential can of worms? Besides that was when he was younger. Would he even remember?

“Hey, you okay? Is that guy going to send help?”

Angela looked at the kid. She had forgotten that he had been there listening to the whole conversation. She was surprised that he wasn’t asking questions about demons and the like or even scoffing about it. She grew suspicious but didn’t let it show. Something was up. Being positive about it was still a toss-up but she was not going to let her guard down. She replied, “I don’t know. There was a lot of static but maybe he caught the gist of what I was saying. If anything he’ll be able to find the needle in the haystack.”

“Okay,” Al replied not completely convinced. He may have just landed in hell’s outhouse on this one. He was following a strange woman who had a bad arm injury and acting like it was nothing. Not to mention an invisible dog that she said was a hell hound. He looked at the woman who was walking around in a circle looking deep in thought. “What are you doing? I thought you had to find your Sam.”

“He’s not my Sam. He is a… close friend. And I am thinking. I have an idea but I am just debating the logic on this.”

“Okaaay. So what’s the idea?”

Angela looked at the kid with a raised brow. She wasn’t sure about him. She hadn’t done any of her more creepy methods of testing for things of the supernatural. She itched to use them but she had hesitated simply because the kid appeared scared and she was more focused on Azazel and his stench was powerful. Hell she could still smell it. Then again she could use a cover. It worked before.

She began explaining to the kid while she gave a tentative sniff and blocked out the other scents like her hell mutt. “I have a talent in talking to other people… with my mind. I think I can reach my friends.”

“You mean you are psychic?”

“Er… not really… I don’t think. I don’t know. Anyway I’m going to try but since there is the possibility of substantial distance, it might not work out very well… but it’s worth a shot,” Angela replied as she conducted her sniffing.

Al listened and then shrugged his shoulders, “Okay. Do what you have to do.”

Angela had her answer and gave a nod. She walked over to where she had left her staff leaning against a tree. She picked it up and held it. She looked off in a direction and stared. She glanced in the direction of the hell hound and gave a slight shake of her head.

Al wondered what she was doing. He just told her to do her little trick and now she was staring out into space. He jumped when she suddenly moved and yanked someone out of a bush before she was given a kick from behind. He picked up a stick and ran at the closest one only to receive a good punch to the face.

Angela had grabbed the person she had heard and tossed them out into the open. She then received a kick from behind but it was weak. Demons didn’t hit weak like that. They were human. She would be nice to them and show mercy. The one who kicked her was distracted by the kid so she went for the one she had grabbed. She grabbed then from behind and asked, “Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“Looking for you.”

Angela knew that voice. She turned her captive around to face a familiar sight, “Jo? Jo Hickerson?”

JoAnne nodded and replied, “Yeah it’s me and Dave.”

Angela looked on in surprise. What were they doing here? “What are you doing here?”

JoAnne looked at David who was helping the kid up. She asked, “Who’s the preppie?”

“Al Gheri,” Al replied as he dusted himself off. He scowled at the guy who he assumed was Dave. “What’s the idea sneaking up on people like that? You trying to stop us or something?”

JoAnne looked at Angela. She didn’t trust this kid. She thought there was something off about him. She could accept Angela’s judgment which was why she glanced at her. Getting her answer she replied, “Dave and I were investigating a haunting of the old powder magazine at the Point and talking about summer leave and camp when suddenly we were no longer there but here.” She then looked Angela straight in the eye and added, “We were added to the game. We are the knights and the grand master sent us here.”

Angela understood the reference to chess pieces. It was one of her favorite pastimes when she wasn’t on a job. She had played quite a few games with Bobby and had cleaned him out. Of course they had upped the stakes with alcohol and in her case, a bottle of pop. What JoAnne was telling her was that Azazel had snatched them and threw them into the mix. He probably offered them a choice and they chose to tangle with her. “Trying to draw a checkmate?”

“Either protect the king or take on the queen,” JoAnne replied. It was rather blunt but there was no other way to tell Angela what was going on.

“So you chose the queen? Why not protect the king? He is more vulnerable,” Angela replied. She was telling JoAnne that Sam was more important than her.

“The king is safe for now. There are others like him. The bigger threat is towards the queen. She’s the most powerful piece on the board going against pawns, knights, bishops and side castles. Besides the knights can help clear the way,” JoAnne gave a slight grin as she finished.

Angela gave a slight nod of understanding. Even though Sam was in danger, he would be all right since he was surrounded by other psychics. He wasn’t stupid either and would be careful and probably be the one to take charge in keeping the group together. She replied, “Knights are handy pieces since the queen wants to make a complicated move.”

JoAnne grinned as she looked over at David. He gave a slight nod with the faintest hint of a smile. “That’s perfectly fine.”

It was roughly fifteen minutes later and about maybe a quarter of a mile closer to where Sam was that Angela felt confident to try her idea. If she could get something through, then perhaps she could try another idea that she had been toying with while she was focusing on her search. She found a rock and climbed on it to sit. _Okay you did this before. You can do it again._ Closing her eyes she began to focus.

The easiest was to focus on the nagging feeling and follow it like a line. The last time had been easy because she was closer to the person she was talking to and she could actually see. Here she had distance and the possibility that she might get into the wrong head. She just had to have a little faith and maybe a little bit of luck. So she followed it all the way until she touched a mind. She gave a slight nudge, _Sam?_

****

Sam was looking for something that had iron in it and salt. After the initial argument between Lily and Jake, he managed to explain that it was a demon that sent them to the ghost town. Jake over reacted thinking that it was insane. It was typical of most people being exposed for the first time to the supernatural and Sam was no stranger to it.

It didn’t help that Ava started to think that he was crazy too. He even admitted that it did but everything fit. They were chosen for something and it looked like the Apocalypse. Jake thought that they were better off on their own and started walking off. It was at that moment that Sam felt that twinge and the sharp pain and Andy quizzed him on it.

Andy was actually taking it better than the others. He didn’t look as freaked as he was when Sam found him. Sam looked at the others before deciding to go after Jake. If there was something going on, then they really shouldn’t be alone. He took off in the direction that Jake had taken when he heard something. He paused and looked around thinking that someone else was behind him or something.

_Sam?_

It came in so clear that it stunned Sam for a moment. It was like she was standing right there next to him since it was that clear. He knew that she was good with her mind but…

_Sam. If you can hear me then you are not crazy. I don’t have much time but know that I am coming. I know you aren’t alone. Stick together and you should be fine, if I assume correctly. I will find you Sam._

As quickly as it came, it was gone and it made Sam wonder if he had been imagining it. Angela just talked to his mind. Granted her had no way of talking back. In fact he didn’t know if he could.

_Stick together._

Sam snapped back into it and continued after Jake. He made it just as Jake was about to get attacked in what appeared to be a school house. It looked like a little girl and she was dirty looking and her fingers were extending into long claws. Jake was warning the thing to get back just as he came to the door. Grabbing the iron poker, he took a swing and the thing dissipated into a cloud of black smoke with residual embers. The smoke left the building just as Ava, Andy and Lily came up. As soon as it left Sam said, “Just so you know… That was a demon.”

If Jake wasn’t a believer then, he was certainly on the way to becoming one. Sam held onto the poker and walked out of the schoolhouse. He might as well give some information. The more they knew, the better chances they had of survival. “That thing, I’m not sure but I think it was an Acheri. It’s a demon that disguises itself as a little girl but that still doesn’t tell us where we are.” He looked to see Andy staring at the ground. “Andy are you with me?”

Andy replied, “I’m still working through the whole demons are real thing.” He also was trying to understand what he felt at the time before Sam rescued Jake at the schoolhouse. He had heard a voice like someone was standing next to him but there was no one there. It was inside his head.

Andy wondered if it was a punishment for training his mind to send images as well. After all she was talking to Sam and probably Sam heard her too. Come to think of it Sam had been a little off a while ago staring out into space. He sent a thought back and she responded with words. When he asked for a name, she gave it to him along with a request to find some sort of landmark of where they were at.

Andy thought it was rather insane that he was talking to a woman in his head but she sounded trustful and she did say that she was trying to find Sam. Now that she knew there were more, she said that she was coming. He gave a promise that he would find something, anything that would put her in the right direction. He couldn’t help but ask if she was available and all he got was a slight chuckle and her telling him that he just needed to focus on staying alive and to stick with Sam.

****

Angela opened her eyes just as the thunder cracked overhead. She had touched a mind or rather two. The second had responded and upon probing, she discovered that his name was Andy. She remembered Andy well and continued to talk to him and learned some more about who was there. She was relieved to know that Sam was okay so far. She made Andy promise to try and send her an image of where they were.

“So did you find out anything?” JoAnne looked at Angela with concern. She had noticed the bloody sleeve of the jacket and wondered if Angela was all right.

“Just that the king is fine and surrounded by others,” Angela replied standing up. They had a lot of ground to cover and she could hear the rain overhead. “Come on.”

Angela led the way following the feeling. She stepped up the pace since she had to cover a lot of ground. She glanced up at the sky and judging what she could see, they were heading in a southern route. She was surprised when a compass was shoved under her nose. She looked at David and accepted it and glanced at it. She was right in the direction and could feel the pace quicken under her feet.

“How’s the arm?”

Angela glanced at JoAnne. “Not bad but not good either. My new pet was sent after me and I fell for the pitiful puppy act and healed him.”

“I thought hell hounds were…” JoAnne frowned in confusion.

“I know. I don’t get it myself.”

JoAnne looked over at David and gave a look that he wasn’t to say anything. She knew firsthand that you didn’t pester Angela about injuries. She would tend to downplay them and spend most of her energy on the immediate goal. In this case it was getting to Sam and the other psychics. That was the reason why she and David chose this in the first place. They could clear the way. “Maybe it’s a talent that you never knew you had.”

“Well I did have an affinity for animals. I once was able to stare down a wolf when I startled him after falling down a hill. I was chasing a wendigo and took a leap but didn’t look.” Angela couldn’t help but chuckle. “I always was impulsive and I would leap before looking.”

“And what about now?”

Angela sighed. It really wasn’t like that at all this time. At least it didn’t seem that way. In fact before she started this game she made sure to ask the rules. She wanted to know what she was getting into. At the time the status quo was in favor of Azazel and probably to some degree it still was. She was still out here and was no closer to finding out where she was or where Sam and the other psychics were for that matter. The message she sent Sam, she wasn’t even sure if he got it. It was worth a shot and she did manage to get Andy and he was able to give her details. So in essence she was looking before she leaped. She looked at JoAnne and replied, “Status quo is in favor of the one conducting the game. Recon is a necessity.”

JoAnne nodded in agreement. “I agree. Then maybe you should run and let us walk. The sooner you get there, the better.”

“Not all the rules are known.”

“No rules.”

“And that usually means that it is the grand master’s rules. He could send anyone or anything,” Angela replied as she scoped out the land in front of her. “It’s one thing you should remember about others like him. Also they lie.”

Al walked behind the two women wondering what the heck they were talking about. Once the two newcomers came in, they started talking in code. At one point he caught the names of chess pieces but even then he didn’t understand what they were referring to. He felt lost and frustrated. He voiced it, “So does anyone here have any idea if we are close to civilization or not?”

Angela glanced back at the kid and replied, “I have no idea how much further.”

“Great and what about food and water?”

Angela dug into her pockets. By sure luck or coincidence, she had a pack of the crap tasting trail mix that Sam had tried to tempt her with. She pulled it out and tossed it at the kid. “Eat this if you’re hungry.” She paused when she heard something.

Holding up her hands, she motioned for everyone to be silent. She cocked her head and listened. She frowned as she listened to the sound. It wasn’t a sign of danger but she wasn’t willing to rule it out. It was very faint so she started walking forward to the point that she was near running, following the faint sound.

She rounded a corner to find that she was on an outcropping overlooking a valley. Her sharp eyes picked out something. It was a windmill, an old one but it looked fairly functional. Scanning further and she could make out buildings but not like a modern town. It was like she was looking down into a town that time forgot but there were signs of wear and tear.

The thunder sounded as she looked at the town. By that time JoAnne, David and the kid managed to catch up. It was Al who asked, “Is that a town?”

Angela nodded, “Yeah but why does it look so familiar?”

JoAnne and David looked at Angela with a puzzled frown. JoAnne didn’t have a problem believing that it was possible but seeing the confused look on Angela’s face had her wondering to. She asked, “You know the place?”

“I don’t know. I used to go by dozens of towns like this way back when the buildings looked new,” Angela continued to frown. She cocked her head. The nagging feeling was strongest in that direction. Was it possible that Sam was there? “What I do know is that we are heading in the right direction.”

They continued down the hill keeping the town in sight with Angela leading the way. JoAnne followed her and she was followed by Al and David brought up the rear. It was a standard movement during an operation. JoAnne and David had been through plenty of drills like that. Angela kept her other senses alert as she walked down when something like and alarm bell went off and it trickled down her spine. She stopped so suddenly that JoAnne bumped into her and was followed by the others.

The others fell over but Angela remained upright. She held her staff ready to strike when she heard laughter? She whirled around and looked and smelled for any sign of activity. It was then she saw it. It was a little girl that looked like she had slept in a barn. She was looking at Angela with a somber face when she lifted her hands and they became claws. She then hissed at Angela and crouched, ready to spring.


	7. Chapter 7

Angela recognized what the girl or rather thing was. Great and she didn’t have anything iron or salt for that matter; nothing but a wooden staff made by her own hand and covered with her blood. She had three people that were more vulnerable than she was that she had to protect and get to Sam and she was within sight of a town that seemed very familiar. It seemed that Azazel had one up on her in the game and she didn’t like it.

JoAnne looked at the little girl that wasn’t a little girl as it hissed at them and then at Angela who was engaged in a stare down. She struggled to get up and nearly slipped on David and Al’s shoulders.

“Stay down,” Angela replied as she stepped forward. “It’s and Acheri. Nasty little bugger.” She stared at the Acheri as it hissed. As soon as it attacked, Angela swung her staff and cuffed it aside. She knew it wouldn’t do much but it was a start.

The Acheri recovered and hissed at Angela before striking again. It was pure reaction as Angela made a swiping motion with her hand. Without touching the Acheri, it was sent flying hard into a tree. When it got back to its feet, it looked at Angela with a strange look. It was like it didn’t know what to make of her.

Angela stared back. She could see the hell mutt glaring and growling at the demon. If she wanted, she could give the word to attack. She continued to stare at the Acheri and it stared back at her. The stare off would have been amusing if it hadn’t been a demon that she was staring down. The Acheri twitched a little in confusion and Angela frowned as she cocked her head to inspect the demon.

Something was off about the demon. Acheri acted on their own unless… Angela looked at the demon and asked, “What do you want?” She advanced.

The Acheri backed away and it hissed. Suddenly it went calm and looked ready to attack again. It extended his claws and attacked again. Angela was ready and swung her staff. She missed and the Acheri jumped on top of her. At least she had the staff to keep the claws away from her but the added weight added to the dull throb she felt from the healing bites. She gritted her teeth and stared at the hissing face in front of her. Angela stared at the face above her as she struggled with the Acheri. She gave a low growl as her teeth elongated and said, “Back off.” With and extra push, she flung the Acheri off and stood up straight. “Stay back.”

The Acheri backed away still hissing. It wanted to attack and made lunging movements. Angela made similar movements and repeated, “Stay back.”

The Acheri hissed in response when suddenly it stopped and looked. Angela followed the direction it was looking at and saw that it was looking at the town. Glancing back at the Acheri, she watched as it hissed and then it disappeared in a cloud of black smoke. Angela watched as it started flying towards the town. Something was calling it.

“Angie what was that?”

Angela didn’t look at JoAnne or the others. “An Acheri. It’s a demon that takes the form of little girls.” She then started walking again towards the town.

****

The forest was quiet but not the eerie quiet as it had been for the past couple of hours. Angela walked forward towards an outcropping and gazed upon the town. She was a fair distance away but it appeared close. She frowned at the town trying to remember where she had seen it before. She glanced back at the others who were sitting and resting and then turned back to look.

“Beautiful isn’t it?”

Angela turned to find Azazel standing close by. She didn’t jump in fright but she glanced at the others and wondered why they weren’t reacting to the demon’s presence. Then it occurred to her that this wasn’t real. She ventured, “This is a dream isn’t it?”

“Smart as is beautiful,” Azazel replied spreading his arms wide. “You make the best queen ever in this game. So… how’s the search for Sammy?”

Angela raised her brow while giving a wry expression. “Why bother to ask? Don’t you already know how it’s going? After all you are the grand master of this game.” She crossed her arms mostly to hide the extent of her injuries on her arm.

Azazel watched Angela’s movements with amusement. She was good and that he didn’t doubt. He was surprised that she was able to cover more than half the distance to the town but then again he could owe it to other things. “By Jove you’re right. I am the grand master of this game. I know that you turned my prize pooch into a lap dog and the two knights I sent after you would never turn against you or Sammy and Dean and the kid is willing to follow you to get out of here. Oh and the little Acheri. Now that was a piece of work.”

Angela started pacing in a circular fashion. Looking at nothing in particular but keeping an eye on the demon she replied, “I would say it is more cruel having one here. These people would hesitate to kill something in the form of a child but it’s not after them. It was after me.”

“Now what gave you that idea my pretty?” Azazel smiled as he put a hand on Angela’s arm and effectively stopped her from moving. He rubbed her arm with his thumb in a slow and seductive way. He knew it would annoy her but she wouldn’t do anything.

Angela stiffened at the demon’s touch but didn’t make a move. The only thing preventing her from lashing out was the fact that Azazel had Sam and she would be damned if she did anything to hurt him. “I am not your pretty Azazel.”

“Ah yes. You belong to someone else,” Azazel moved his hand to tap the area where her tattoo was. “And yet you have a role to play with my kids. Now how about we go somewhere that will give you more incentive to play as well as understand what I am trying to do?”

Before Angela could say anything she was standing in the middle of a town. She was standing in front of a bunch of people in front of a bell. One of them was a familiar face. “Sam.” She started forward but was held back by Azazel.

“Easy there my pretty. They can’t see you and certainly not Sammy. Think of it as a high definition illusion but you are seeing what is going on.” Azazel gave a slight laugh.

Angela stopped struggling and resigned to watch the conversation. Demons, at least the powerful ones, were good at doing that. She watched as Sam looked at the bell. “I’ve seen that bell before.”

Angela looked at the bell. She ignored the conversation for the moment and focused on the bell. There was an engraving on it. It was a tree but not just any old tree. It was an oak tree. The memory came back in a flash. It was when the whole town was being evacuated. She helped and she could remember the fear and the screaming and the mayhem that happened. There were people running and jumping into their wagons. The chaos had been so great that people were leaving behind things or were haphazardly throwing stuff into their wagons.

It all made sense now. It was part of the reason why the cell phones didn’t work. The desolate look of the town itself along with the Acheri… She turned to look at Azazel and said just as Sam did, “Cold Oak, South Dakota.”

Azazel could help but laugh in amusement at how synchronized their responses were. She probably didn’t realize that she had spoken at the same time Sammy boy did yet it was like watching siblings talk. He couldn’t fault her ability to figure things out at all since he knew she had been here before. He was a little disappointed that she hadn’t figured it out sooner. Well she still was learning. The force she used to repel the Acheri was a statement to that. “I see you remember.”

“It makes sense. Drop the psychic kids in a town that became so haunted that the living fled in terror, completely abandoning it…”

“Where it became my playground,” Azazel finished. “So what do you think? I mean it’s not exactly the way I planned it since a substantial group of my kids disappeared off the radar in no small part to you. My lost kid…”

“Stayed lost well you did find her but she has something working for her,” Angela replied as she adopted a similar posture as Azazel. It was a joking sarcastic posture that she adopted at times when she was thoroughly annoyed or just wanted to be difficult on purpose.

“Ah yes the old woman. I see you’ve improved on some levels though I am sorry about that business with the slayers.”

“Save your sympathy Azazel. Now why did you bring me here?”

“Right down to business. It’s one of the reasons why I like you,” Azazel replied. He emphasized his point by pointing at Angela. “If you really want to know, stick around and watch the show.”

Angela turned around to find a blonde girl talking to Sam. She looked clearly distressed at everything that was happening. When she mentioned that she accidentally touched and killed her girlfriend, Angela felt sympathy. The poor girl literally destroyed everything she touched and she could sympathize even though she didn’t have that ability. As a whole, Angela felt for every single one of Azazel’s kids.

At least Sam was trying to be reassuring. It looked like he may have heard a part or all of what she sent beforehand. He led the way through the town stating that they needed to find anything made of iron or silver and to find salt. There was some skepticism about the usefulness of salt. As Sam said it, Angela thought, _It’s a brave new world._ She frowned though when the girl named Lily stopped and decided to make a break for it. She started following the girl leaving behind the others. As soon as she reached the edge of town, she was stopped by an invisible force. She turned to look at Azazel.

“Can’t have you leave now. You gotta watch.”

Angela growled slightly and turned back. She kept glancing at the way the Lily girl left. She wandered back to the building the others went into. She watched from the outside as they looked around for supplies. She gave a slight smile as she watched Andy looking around. The kid was virtually harmless and granted that she wasn’t impressed by his dependency on weed, she liked him and hoped that she could get him out.

It was then she heard the giggling. It was a little girl’s giggle and it was a warning sign that the Acheri was near. She raced through the town in the direction of the giggling. As she rounded the corner, she saw the demon with the girl Lily. She watched as the demon strung up the girl. She barely acknowledged that the others came out to see the same sight as she turned towards Azazel, “What is this?”

Azazel just laughed at her. If she hadn’t figured it out by now, then that was on her but he got the feeling that she had some idea. She just wanted to hear it straight out. “See why you have to find Sam before something happens?”

Angela was going to say something when she found herself back at the outcropping with Azazel. She looked at the town and back at the demon. “So this is what you have planned then. A test for their abilities?”

“Call it a battle royal. I am looking for the best one out of them all,” Azazel replied. It didn’t matter if the queen knew almost everything. She still had to make it to the king and she still had one challenge left to play. “But I’ll let you in on something. I am rooting for Sam. I have been since day one. I always knew that there was something special with that kid. Now you still have a game to play. The queen must make it to the king and I’m rooting for ya.”

“You would root for a turtle if you thought it could do whatever you wanted. You used me to get you free,” Angela replied while keeping a firm grip on her temper. So the demon wanted to pit the psychics against each other in order to find the best and he had his eye on Sam. The very idea was one that had her blood boil but the fact that Azazel wanted something of hers… It was like Cal all over again and Azazel was the one that took Mary too.”

“And I have big plans for you too. Don’t worry my pretty. All will be revealed in due time. Just remember that your main rule is to find Sam.”

Angela opened her eyes to find that it was late in the afternoon. She looked to find the others stirring and her hell mutt patrolling. David was actually awake and watching out for everyone while he was lounging against a tree. She rubbed her face to clear the sleep from her eyes and looked in the direction of the town.

“You okay?”

It was David that sat next to her. He let his legs dangle over the edge just like her legs. Angela didn’t look at him but stared over at the town. “Not really, Barcalow.”

“You’re worried about your friends.”

“I made a promise Barcalow, but it’s not about that anymore. Not for some time,” Angela replied as she felt in her pockets. It was her luck that she found some of that jerky stuff she bought from time to time and took a bite.

David paused for a moment to think about what to say. He didn’t know her or her friends very well and maybe one experience didn’t give him any right to say anything but he felt that sounded right to do so. “When Parsons tied us up, they were worried about you.”

“They shouldn’t. I’m not worth it.” As soon Angela said those words, she knew that if she had said them in front of the boys, they would let her have it. Sam had said she was worth it and Dean showed more than told her how much he appreciated having her around. She stood up and stuffed the last bit of jerky in her mouth. “I think we’ll have to separate on this.”

“Why is that?” David stood up. “Jo and I chose to be here to help you. She would kick my ass if you manage to get me to drag her away from this.”

“I know. The demon wants me… not you. I have to get to Sam and the others in that town before something bad happens.”

“Then you’ll need back up. Jo and I can help.”

Angela gave a small and grateful smile. “You and Jo are new at this. Even after a few centuries I still manage to get a few scratches that take a while to heal.” She showed her bad arm for emphasis.

David shrugged his shoulders. It was his choice and JoAnne’s they made it and they were going to stick by it. He gave a smirk and said, “That werewolf case was no picnic either. Thing gave me a nice scratch before Jo took it out. So we’re sticking with you. We’re your knights.”

At that moment JoAnne came up and handed Angela her staff. She had overheard the conversation and was proud of David for saying his thoughts. They echoed hers too. She said, “Damn straight.”

Angela couldn’t argue with them. She turned to the kid and asked, “Hey Al, are you still willing to hang around for a little while longer?”

Al gave a nod as he stood up, “Yeah. The way I see it, I’m a few steps closer to getting back home.”

It was decided. Angela gave a nod and started on the path that would lead them to town. It was reliving the past heading back to Cold Oak but then again with her life she had been reliving it. Focusing she concentrated on the nagging feeling and followed it. She picked up her pace now that she knew what was at stake. She would have to tell her little party some time what was so important.

At the moment she had to worry about the Acheri which was still out there. It had already killed on of the psychics and who knows how many it would get before she got there. She had every confidence though that Sam would do his best to keep them all safe. No matter how scared he might be, he was just as focused as his brother when it came to the thing that they did best. She would do her best and Barcalow was right. She had her knights to help too and, if she cared to mention it, a hell mutt. She would play Azazel’s game but beat him at it. She increased her pace to a jog and since they were heading downhill, she seemed to go faster.

****

Sam didn’t know if he was doing the right thing or not. The demon wasn’t going to let any of them leave. Lily was dead and he didn’t know if Andy’s message ever reached Dean or not. With everything going on there was a real possibility that his brother was dead and he hoped that it wasn’t so. Angela was a different story.

He was sure that it had been her that talked to him earlier. It was in her voice and it spoke in the manner she would. It was short and to the point and pretty much gave the order for him to stick together with the other psychics. It did occur to him that the demon may be messing with him and trying to give him false hope.

_I will find you Sam._

That line. Deep down he knew that it was no work of a demon. No one had that much determination when there was work needing to be done. Deep down he knew that the voice in his mind was hers. How she managed to do it, he wasn’t sure but he suspected that it had to do with her ability that she could use to make people do whatever she wanted. It was similar to Andy’s but it was not. Sam had a thought and went to find Andy.

The plan was to gear up to fight the demon and that meant finding weapons with iron and silver and laying down salt lines. Andy had found bags of salt and was laying down lines. Talking to him would be a lot better than the conversation he had with Ava and him telling her that her fiancé didn’t make it. He found Andy looking around for any other weapons to use. “Hey Andy?”

“Oh Sam. Um I didn’t find anything else. You know maybe one of these other buildings has salt.” Andy started babbling a little. Everything that had happened was a lot to take in and not to mention that he managed to send something long distance to Sam’s brother Dean. That reminded him. He needed to talk to the woman again.

Sam raised his hands to indicate that Andy was to calm down. “It’s alright Andy. I just came to ask you something.”

“Oh. Okay. So what do you want to know?”

Sam knew that there was no easy way to ask what he wanted to know. Hell with everything that happened today was not easy to digest or explain. He began, “Andy, I am curious… did you happen to…?”

Andy knew what Sam was talking about right away. So her message did get through. How much to tell Sam was something he had to think about since some of the conversation wasn’t exactly the kind of thing you shared. He filled in, “Hear a voice? Sounded female and rather exotic like she was not from around here and a little pushy at times? Yeah. Is that your friend?”

Sam didn’t know if he wanted to jump for joy at discovering that he was not going crazy or what. The description that Andy gave was exactly how Angela’s voice sounded though the exotic description had him puzzled and yet the pushiness was her. She was only pushy when it was urgent. He replied, “Yeah that was Angie.”

“You know she was really pushy. She kept saying to stick together and that she was on her way.”

“I got the same thing too.”

“Is she a psychic like us?”

Sam had been deep in thought when Andy asked his question. It took him a moment to process what Andy had been asking and he replied, “Angie? No. She’s…” Now it was the difficult part. How much should he tell about her? People tended to react differently when they learned that she was half human and one of her parents was related to one of the creatures that he hunted and supposedly didn’t exist. He glanced at Andy to see if he could take it. “She’s… not your average person.”

“Is she a demon?”

Sam was quick to respond, “What? No!” _Though she may say that she might as well be._ He still didn’t get why she went through self-deprecation and thought that she shouldn’t be treated like a human but he didn’t see her in a bad light and neither did Dean. “She’s…?”

“What? A vampire?” Andy asked the question as a joke since he was thinking that she was something that Sam would rather keep quiet. However when Sam didn’t really say anything and looked a little guilty over it, Andy realized that it may not be a joke after all. “You’re kidding me? A vampire?”

“Half uh actually but don’t worry she doesn’t do the whole blood sucking thing,” Sam replied. He realized that it was hardly reassuring that he was friends with someone who was half vampire and she didn’t drink blood. Well unless she suffered severe blood loss.

“That’s very reassuring,” Andy replied. He had talked in his mind with a vampire. He didn’t know if that was a cool thing or a freaky thing. Well Sam did say that it was a brave new world when Jake questioned the validity of using salt against a demon and she sounded more concerned about their welfare than anything else. “So is she hot?”

“What?” Sam frowned at the question.

“Never mind, just a thought. Trying to get a face with the voice but yeah she talked to me but I think she was trying to reach you. I was the only one who responded so she talked to me.” Andy changed the subject after babbling for a few moments.

“What you guys talk about?”

“Well not movies or anything and she didn’t bite when I asked her out but she was concerned about you. You two…?”

Sam gave a slight smile. “No nothing like that. We’re just friends and it’s her way. She cares more about people but did she say that she was with Dean?”

Andy wasn’t so sure about Sam’s answer. Sam may say they were friends but the way he said it. It left something to think about. He wouldn’t ask though and replied, “No. I don’t think she’s with your brother. She mentioned something about woods but she was talking kind of fast. Like she didn’t know how long she had or something.”

 _It was probably the first time she tried it_ , Sam thought. Still if she was nearby then she might be able to handle the Acheri if it showed up. Hell she might even be of some help if she made it before the next attack. “So she’s probably on her own out there.”

“In the woods?”

“Probably but what does the demon want with her?” Sam asked the question more to himself. The only conclusion he had was because it was no big secret that she was after the demon. It seemed like there were people and things that knew that and would either try to stop her or get out of her way. Maybe the demon wanted payback. It was a sobering thought but that didn’t dispel the faith he had in her abilities. “Thanks Andy.”

Andy watched as Sam went about his business in finding more stuff to guard against the demon. He had faith in Sam and that he would be able to help them get out and he envied his ability to stay calm. This thing though with his friend, Andy wasn’t sure if it bothered Sam or not. He went about his business looking for more salt or iron or silver.


	8. Chapter 8

Ellen was glancing at her watch and sighed in impatience. This was the longest she had ever been away from the Roadhouse to resupply something they ran out of and of all things, it was pretzels! She went to the nearest town to buy the pretzels with the intent on getting in and getting out and back to the bar before Ash drank the taps dry. As it turned out, it seemed as if everyone and their mama needed to go to the store to buy something.

The parking lot was chaos. Ellen had to do laps just to find a parking space. As she was doing so, she tried calling Angela again even though she said she would try to follow Jo’s advice. Ellen couldn’t explain it but she got the feeling that something was going to happen, something big and that it would involve the girl. Being a mother, Ellen felt concerned and she wanted to make sure Angela was okay. It probably was overkill but she felt it necessary.

_This is Angela. Leave a message._

“Angie, now I’m probably overreacting and you’ll probably say the same thing but damn girl this is like the third time I called you and you haven’t picked up. You haven’t even called me back,” Ellen made a turn down another aisle as she cradled the phone with her shoulder. “Now I know something is happening and I just want to make sure that you’re all right. So call me when you get this message.” Ellen hung up just as she finally managed to get a parking spot after becoming the aggressive driver.

The store might as well should have been on the other side of the world given the fact that she had to walk a ways to the door but that didn’t matter. She was walking through a sea of humanity as she walked in and grabbed a basket. Every aisle she walked down there were people and on both sides of the aisle. It was lines everywhere.

Ellen felt like everywhere she went she was in a line. She finally managed to make it to the aisle that had all the snack foods. By the time she got to the pretzels she found that there were only three bags left. It wasn’t enough but it would do for now. Maybe as a bit of punishment she would have Angela buy some more when she called back. It wasn’t much of a punishment since that girl could charm a robber into turning themselves in but it would be fun to have her go into a sea of humanity and in all places a grocery store.

Grabbing the three bags Ellen did an abrupt turn and started for the checkout lines. She gave an annoyed look at the person who gave her a dirty look for cutting them off. To hell with all the lines. She had a business to run and she had a girl who was like a daughter to her to chew out once she finally got the time to answer the damn phone. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Ash with the bar but with the way things were going today, she needed to be at the helm of her own ship.

She made her way to the checkout lanes and found that all the lanes had lines all the way back to Timbuktu. Ellen groaned in frustration and got into the express line. Even those were lines longer than the trip from the Roadhouse. Ellen was about ready to give up right then and there but if she didn’t bring back the pretzels, then that was going to be a fiasco. Well she might as well call Ash and tell her that she was going to be late.

Trying hard not to tap her foot in impatience, Ellen dialed the number for the Roadhouse. She frowned when she got static on the pick-up. She looked at her phone and saw that the numbers were right. She tried again but this time she got an error message. Disconnecting Ellen sighed, “This is just not a good day. Ash better not be messing with my power lines again.”

The line actually moved a little but it was not enough to convince Ellen that she was going to get out of there any time soon. She tried the Roadhouse again. This time the line was dead at the other end and that had Ellen go on the alert. Something was wrong at the Roadhouse. This could wait.

Stepping out of line Ellen started towards the exit. On the way there she dropped the basket with the pretzels on a nearby counter that was piled with some sort of fruit. She didn’t hear the protests as some of the fruit fell to the ground. She was out the door and on the way to her vehicle with her keys out of the pocket and in her hands. She was in the vehicle within two shakes and had the engine started and ready to go.

She pulled out of the parking lot and started down the road. Making sure there were no cops in sight, Ellen floored it. Something was happening at the Roadhouse and it wasn’t good. First Angela doesn’t call and then this. Something was definitely going on. She continued to coax the vehicle at the speed she was going, trying to get some life out of it. Suddenly something knocked in the engine and Ellen nearly swore. Looking up she saw that something was blocking the road. She pulled over and popped the hood.

Shutting the door with a slam Ellen opened the hood and looked at the engine. “Dammit I knew I shouldn’t have let Bobby Singer touch it.” She didn’t mean it though. She knew that Bobby had told her that he had done all that he could with it and she should salt and burn the thing. Hell even Angela said the same thing after she took a look. She glanced at the engine and put her hands on her hips. Damn thing was dead. She was going to have to abandon the thing and head back on foot. Leaving the hood open, she grabbed her bag and started walking down the road. She had no idea that she was being watched by a very interested party.

****

The day had been an ominous one ever since he woke up that morning. It was confirmed when the report came in over his phone. Austin checked to make sure that he read the report correctly as he dressed. He checked on his charge just as his phone beeped. New orders had come.

Making sure that the place was secure, he left on the motorbike that he had managed to secure ever since being assigned to this one. He took off down the highway towards the location his orders gave. He wanted to go out and search but he had orders and he knew how important the subject of those orders was so he obeyed them.

He made it to the location early in the day and went in. The old woman called Ellen didn’t know him and neither did the one called Ash. They assumed that he was a drifter just passing through and he blended in. His orders were clear but the trick was figuring out how to do it. His chance came when he saw Ellen leave to get more pretzels and he left a good five minutes after she did.

It was easy to stage the roadblock while she was in the store. All it took was a few well-placed explosions of some junkers he found and he was in business. It would keep authorities busy for a while as they would try to put out the fires and the like and it would hold up traffic. It was unexpected when he saw her vehicle stall on the road not far from the road block. All he intended was for her to be kept up a few hours while he went back for the other.

He watched as she gave up on trying to fix the darn thing and grabbed her bag and started walking. That worked out better than he hoped. She would be a couple of hours. He saw to it that she was well on the road before running to where his bike was hidden. He wouldn’t take the road she was on since he would rather that she didn’t know about him just yet. The Harvelle reputation was well known like the Winchester reputation and she would probably have something in her bag that would prove to be a bitch and he was not in the mood to be fighting off anything that would be as irritating as a fly to a very bad sunburn. Besides he knew better than to mess with women who could hand a grown man their ass with a single look.

Gearing up, he took off down the back road. He had to get back to the Roadhouse and make sure that Ash was safe as well. He gave the bike its head once he made it to the highway. Anything else he would deal with it as it came.

****

Dean was still sore about the phone call that he got and he regretted that Bobby heard the entire conversation. He had no idea who the bitch was who taunted him about his brother but he had an idea that she knew Angela and more likely Angela knew her. Dean wasn’t upset with Angela for not telling him or Sam about the bitch and frankly it was none of his business… at least until now. He tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

“Dean?”

Dean’s first reaction was to deny everything and say that it was all right. However Bobby had heard his end of the conversation and could probably guess at what it was all about. He couldn’t lie and he knew that Bobby was just as concerned about Sam and Angela and he knew Bobby had a soft spot for her.

_Don’t tease, Dean. I rather like it. It’s been a long time since anyone treated me like I was their daughter. Besides I know a few things that I know you wouldn’t want me blabbing about._

Dean remembered that conversation when he first found out that Angela had been staying with Bobby. He had witnessed Bobby giving a sheepish smile when Angela walked in with a basket of Bobby’s clothes freshly laundered and neatly folded. Of course she said in a no nonsense voice that his and Sam’s laundry was next. It was a little thing but deep down, Dean knew that it made all the difference in his regard of Angela but it also had him think about what the bitch on the phone said. Did he really use her like that?

Realizing that Bobby was waiting for an answer, he replied, “Just thinking Bobby. About what the hell bitch said. About how maybe I use Angie as a protection hound for Sam.”

“Ya know that ain’t true right boy?”

“I know Bobby but I just can’t help but think that right now. The bitch was screwing with my head and I know demons lie…”

“Now how do you know it was a demon? It could be some other thing out there.”

“Something about the way she talked and the things she said. It was personal the way she called her little sister. Damn Angie didn’t say anything because she was…”

“Protecting the both of ya idjits,” Bobby finished. He had some idea of who Dean was talking about since Angela had spent three months living under his roof and they did have some bonding moments. “Dean, your dad made her promise to look after you. She chose to make more of it. Why is something you’ll have to ask her when ya find her.”

Dean gave a slight nod. Bobby was right. “You’re right. Besides she would want us to focus on finding Sam. Well I’m doing that and then some. I’m finding her too and I bet Ash will have an idea where to look.”

Bobby was glad to see that Dean was getting focused. It was also a nice thing to see what the boy actually thought of here. True they got back together but even that kind of thing is a relationship builder. Some of the things Angela and Dean said to each other were almost guarded at times like each was afraid of offending the other. Sam thankfully was the balance with that playing the mediator.

“You know Bobby I know that Angie and me haven’t been on solid ground but I appreciate what she does. I tell her she doesn’t have to on some things but you know how bossy she is but it’s our bossy,” Dean rambled on, the tone of affection clear in his voice. It helped dispel the gloom and as they got closer to the Roadhouse it became lighter. Knowing that he was a step closer to finding Sam had him ready to chomp at the bit.

“I know what you mean,” Bobby agreed. Angela was bossy but in that good natured way. She always seemed to know when to push and when to give. Bobby attributed it to her being the age that she was. “I don’t doubt that she’ll find Sam first.”

“Me neither.”

They drove on in silence that started to become somber as Dean pulled up to see a burned down and smoking Roadhouse. Neither hunter said a word as they got out of the car and made their way to the charred ruins. To say something would make the worst fears come crashing down. Dean didn’t want to even think the worst and made a half hearted prayer that Ash and Ellen were all right. He couldn’t think what he was going to do if the one link to finding at least Sam was gone.

Slowly they walked through the smoking wood. Dean asked, “Do you see Ellen?”

Bobby looked around not willing to touch anything that resembled human but if he had to he would. So far he didn’t see anything that resembled Ellen. He replied that he didn’t and continued to on his search. Right now he was glad that neither Sam nor Angela had to see this. He would have been more worried about Angela’s reaction since she and Ellen were close and she seemed pretty close with Ash. He asked Dean if he saw anything that resembled Ash or Ellen.

Dean tried not to gag on the stench of burning flesh and wondered how the hell this happened and what happened. Each time he looked around, he felt as if something were sinking into the pit of his stomach. His eyes then managed to catch something that he had hoped not to see. Trying not to gag and succeeded in making a frown he kneeled to examine a charred hand with a wristwatch. He recognized it right away. “Aw damn it Ash.”

It was like getting a kick in the guts with that. Dean stood up and stared down at the remains of Ash. What was so important that it got him killed over? Dean didn’t know exactly but he had the sense to figure out that whatever the big thing was, it had to do with Sam and probably to a larger extent Angela and that bitch who called him may know the answers. He was half tempted to dial the number and try to worm it out of her whether through dismemberment or exorcism… whatever worked at the moment.

Fiddling in his pocket with his phone Dean walked back towards the Impala. He was upset that Ash was dead and who knew if Ellen was dead too. Good people were lost and it would eat at Dean but now they couldn’t stop to think about that now. Ash was his only link for finding Sam and Angela. He needed to find another way.

“What about those friends of hers? The vampire… Austin?”

Dean glanced at Bobby as he leaned into the Impala to think. “What one of those Centurion dicks?”

“Not all of them ain’t that bad and you know it.”

That was true but Dean got the feeling that Austin was only being polite with him the last time they met. The one that Angela called ‘Fang Boy’ would be a good suggestion but they only met and never spoke a word to each other. How in the hell would that help? “Maybe Bobby but if this thing is big and it involves people like Sam, then they would be out there looking after them. As far as the Centurion is concerned, Sam and I are Angie’s problem… the short version that is.” He put his forehead on his fists to think.

“Still it’s worth a try.”

Dean was going to say something when a sharp pain hit his head. He thought he saw something but he was more focused at squeezing out the pain. Bobby asked him what was wrong and he tried brushing it off, even claiming that he was no psychic. Then the pain came again and this time is was much more intense.

_The bell came into focus. The bell had an engraving on it of a tree or something. The image flashed and he saw the bell. This time Sam was in the picture. It flickered again and he heard the name ‘Angie.’ That infernal bell came into view again._

Dean opened his eyes wide and took a deep breath. “Well that was about as much fun as getting kicked in the jewels.”

“What was it? A vision? What did you see?”

Dean was still reeling from the headache that just happened as he tried to answer. “I saw Sam. And a bell.”

Bobby paused. A bell? That sounded familiar and he proceeded to quiz Dean on what was on the bell. Upon learning that it was the engraving of an oak tree, he knew exactly where Sam was. “I know where your brother is.”

“I think Angie is there too or somewhere nearby. I heard her name and it sounded like Sam’s voice but distorted almost,” Dean replied as he followed Bobby to where he pulled out the map.

“Why not an image like everything else?”

That was a good question. Dean thought about it. It could be that Angela was there but not in the line of sight of whoever sent that. That sounded stupid even to Dean. Another possibility was that Angela was nearby wherever Sam was but they didn’t know it. Dean knew that Angela had mental powers but she never used them but he was sure that when push came to shove, she would use them especially if it meant finding Sam. “Maybe she’s nearby and is making her way to Sam wherever he is.”

“Seems possible and if I’m right, it would make sense,” Bobby found the place. “Cold Oak, South Dakota. That’s where Sam is. The bell gave it away. It’s town that was said to be so haunted that every living thing just up and left.”

“Sounds like the place. Come on.” Dean got into the Impala followed by Bobby. A lead just fell into their laps and they were going to follow it. _I’m coming Sammy._

****

Austin waited until the Impala left before coming out of hiding. He had arrived too late and the other one that would have been vital to helping the elder Winchester was dead. He had failed in his mission. He couldn’t mope about it though. He had good days and bad days before but he was at a loss at how to even tell her that he couldn’t save Dr. Badass.

He was making good time on the back roads since they weren’t full of traffic and the mayhem that he caused with burning junkers. Ellen was walking on her way back and should be here sometime soon. So he could take some comfort in the fact that he didn’t totally let her down.

Leaving his bike in the brush, he walked towards the burnt Roadhouse and started poking around. He knew Ash was dead and in fact was able to surmise it from the way Dean reacted. The sarcastic thought that Dean Winchester had a heart stole into his mind and was quickly dispelled by the fact that she wouldn’t have approved.

Austin was not really warmed up to Dean ever since Hudson and let it be known to the eldest Winchester before the brothers left that town. He couldn’t understand why she would even go back to them after everything that had happened and that conversation hadn’t gone well when he asked. He finally conceded that maybe she could see things that he didn’t. He really didn’t hold a grudge against Sam though and he could admit that he liked him… even if his blood had that repulsive smell.

Austin located Ash while trying not to let the smell of burning flesh bother him even though it was filling his nostrils. He kneeled and sighed over the part of the body that was visible from underneath all the debris. “Sorry kid. I thought I would be here before things got ugly. What did you know that could have gotten you into so much trouble?”

“I could tell you but then I would have to kill you.” The voice was accompanied by a tinkle of laughter that grated on Austin’s ears.

Austin didn’t react suddenly but rather slowly and deliberately stood up and placed his hands in his jean pockets. He slowly turned around and replied, “The correct phrasing would be that after you told me, then I would have to kill you.”

Lenya looked at the vampire as it looked at her with a slightly bored expression. She was miffed to a degree because even the bloodsuckers knew better and to show respect. This one looked like he didn’t give a damn. That didn’t make him less dangerous though and she knew this one just like she knew his partner. “Now Austin. Don’t be upset that I spoiled your fun before you got here.”

“I should’ve known Lenya that you would be behind this but you don’t act alone now do you? Tell me: are you still following Azazel’s orders?  Wait I remember. You do because you don’t have a brain of your own.”

“You would do well to show respect for your betters…”

“Please. Your heyday was long before you and I were born,” Austin replied. His muscles were tense but he appeared relaxed. He ran a hand through his messy hair and it messed the locks up even more but he still managed to look like a teenage heartthrob. “Besides I don’t even like you.”

“The feeling is mutual bloodsucker,” Lenya replied, “But at least some of your kin know when to be meek. An attitude as yours could get you into trouble.”

“More than I already am? Please.” Austin added a slight snort.

“Don’t brush it off Austin. You may be the orphan pure-blood but you still are a pure-blood and you still have certain obligations.”

Austin raised a brow that looked skeptical. “Don’t even try the whole duty thing. I have an allergy to that. Since you are here I am assuming that you intend to make sure the job is complete? If that’s the case then take your best shot.”

Lenya smiled and couldn’t help but let out the laugh. It was a woman’s laugh but it had a dangerous timbre to it. It sounded almost like a laugh from the evil villainess in some B-rated movie or something. She rarely used that laugh in her altercations. It always came out like a little girl’s laugh and was very deceptive when it came to her opponents. Little sister was never fooled though and so it appeared that Austin wasn’t either. She replied, “I just came to gloat my dear boy. After all, the pathetic meat suit that I just roasted knew just a little too much I think. I didn’t want him to spoil Uncle’s game too soon. Little sister needs to complete her task.” She put up a finger and innocently bit the nail trying to look cute.

“So he did know something.”

“I suppose he did. Why little sister chooses to hang around such meat suits is beyond me.” Lenya gave up the farce and stood there in a matter of fact way.

Austin smirked, “Maybe to erase your ugly mug. By the way I love the way you added the scar. It gives a new dimension to your character.”

Lenya growled. She hated being reminded of that night. Her beautiful face had been ruined by that infernal blade and now she would never be rid of it. No more playing now. “Alright bloodsucker, you’ve had your fun but remember this will involve little sister no matter what you do. In the end the storm will come.” She was then gone.

Austin stared at the place Lenya occupied. Her threats weren’t to be taken lightly and he would worry about that later. Right now he would wait until Ellen got back and then they could figure out what to do from there.


	9. Chapter 9

Angela kept up the pace. It felt like she was going as fast as she could but it seemed like she was no closer. The forest had a way of doing that to people and it looked like she was falling into another trap. It would be like Azazel to mess with her head like that but even that idea sounded like kid’s play even for the demon.

What really bothered Angela was the fact that it was quiet. Too quiet for her liking even though there were the usual noises of the forest. She was generous to admit that she was working overtime in terms of her senses and she was full of adrenaline. She was injured and she was sure that her wound kept opening up since it was throbbing like hell and it was tender to the touch. She couldn’t think about that right now. She had to focus on her task and the environment around her.

JoAnne stayed near Angela her hand clenched with the pocketknife she had in her jacket pocket. She had been watching her companion and noticed that underneath the determination, she was hurting and if JoAnne could guess it was the arm. She didn’t pry though knowing that Angela would just insist that everything was fine and that the main thing was to find Sam and with the way things were going, night was going to be upon them soon and it was going to rain again. She narrowed her eyes and plunged ahead pausing only to check her senses.

JoAnne had never seen anyone that focused before. True she and David had to have that at the Point especially during the drills and everything but this could be classified as borderline obsession. Yet she didn’t see that at all. It seemed that what she was seeing was apparent to outsiders but not the parties involved. She gave a slight hum that sounded like a chuckle.

“I see you found something to put a smile on,” Angela said softly.

“Just an observation,” JoAnne replied. “Learned that a good observer can show you things you didn’t think possible.” She smiled slightly as she walked forward. She sensed the hell hound trotting beside her and sniffing her hand in curiosity. “Are you sure that the hell mutt is not going to try anything?”

Angela glanced over at the beast. She was glad that humans couldn’t see the bitches born and bred in hell because she was still trying to get used to the look that happy normal dogs gave her coming from the thing. It gave a slight whine at her and she looked at JoAnne before turning to the path ahead. “Pretty sure. He hasn’t tried anything since I healed him.”

“Looks like you should have done it to yourself,” JoAnne replied pointing to Angela’s arm. “It looks bad. Is there anything…?”

“Finding Sam is important. Dean is counting on me and… I made a promise.” Angela put her good hand gently over the wounded arm. It was tender for sure. She was definitely taking a vacation after this. She quickened her pace only to be held in check by JoAnne.

“Hey we’re already pretty much double timing it. I don’t think the kid is used to this,” JoAnne said as she gave a slight toss of her head in the direction of Al.

Angela glanced back. She could see the kid looking tired but he was keeping up. He hadn’t complained so far. It wouldn’t be fair to make him go what was normal for her. She nodded at JoAnne and looked around and then up at the sky. Night was going to fall soon and they were going to get rain again. She could tell in the clouds. Looking back down she thought she spotted something. She held JoAnne back and motioned for her to stay put. Leaning her staff against the tree, she slunk off into the brush.

David had seen Angela pause and became alert. He ushered the kid Al to move in close and fingered his own knife. He found it suspicious that the demon allowed him and JoAnne to have some sort of weapon on hand and yet it was reassuring to have even the knife. To use against what he could only imagine but at least his and JoAnne’s knives had an edge against the things they did aside from stuff at the Point. It was handy now as he scoured the perimeter.

“Hey where did that Angela girl go?”

David and JoAnne looked at Al and he went quiet after shrugging for a little bit. JoAnne looked in the direction that Angela went and found that she couldn’t see her. How could the girl disappear and with apparently a bum arm? The question was answered when Angela reappeared next to David and she was holding up what appeared to be an arrow. She said, “Guess we have to be wary of regular traps too.”

JoAnne curse, “Shit.” She had just spotted the mounting and followed the line to the trigger. If they had continued forward, it would have hit someone.

“I think someone is getting nervous,” Angela said as she looked in the direction she needed to head in. “Good because I’m getting annoyed and on the way to full out pissed.” She grabbed her staff and started walking forward. The surprises like demons and hell hounds she could take but the stupid human trap tricks were annoying.

As they continued walking Al asked, “Is she always this… forceful?”

JoAnne said nothing but walked faster and caught up with Angela to take her usual position. David took the rear and was the one to answer the question, “She knows things. More than us. It is better to follow her lead.”

Al nodded and kept his pace. The day had been long and strange. He just wanted to go home and was glad that they were at least heading to some sort of civilization.

****

The hike continued in silence with Angela stopping the group to disarm traps and on one occasion stop one after it had been accidentally tripped. They managed to cover more distance and Angela sent the hell hound ahead to find if there was anything to be wary about as they took another break. She sat on a boulder and leaned against the tree and stared in the direction they were to heading in. They were so close, that she could see the outskirts of town and night was falling and it was going to rain again. That was always such fun. There was still a fair distance to cover but she could easily sprint the distance and be there in no time. The nagging feeling had gotten stronger and she took it as a good sign.

Looking in the direction of Cold Oak, she wondered if Sam was doing okay. She had seen the Acheri demon kill the one girl Lily and she wondered about it. Encountering the demon and the way it reacted. It was almost as if it were commanded to attack her. It didn’t attack the others. It just focused solely on her and when she commanded it to back off it reacted as if it were confused. That was not normal Acheri behavior. It was almost as if…

_Yes I control it. It was me._

Angela heard the voice in her mind. It wasn’t Andy’s. That kid was not malicious by nature. It was female and Lily was dead. That left one choice, the other girl… Ava. Angela suddenly figured out what had been happening in Cold Oak. She responded, _A surprising turn of events… Ava._

_So you know who I am. Well that’s hardly a surprise since you practically screamed out who you are. Did you think no one else heard what you said?_

Angela narrowed her eyes while staring in the direction of the town. This was hardly the Ava she knew about from Sam’s descriptions and her own research. What Azazel was having them do… she could see having been down that road before. She replied, _I expected something to get through. I am sorry Ava._

_You’re sorry? If it weren’t for you, the demon wouldn’t have come to me and the power… the learning curve…_

Angela gave a pensive look. _You weren’t born with it Ava. It’s the blood talking…_

_I’m the undefeated heavyweight champion here. The others don’t stand a chance. One by one just to make it fun and maybe I’ll save Sam for last._

Angela gritted her teeth controlling the anger that was boiling. It was not so much the threat as was the fact that Azazel had been turning essentially good people into instruments of evil. _Don’t do this Ava. You’re better than that._

_Says the bloodsucker trying to be human. You hurry up and get here. I want you to see what I do to Sam. A pity too since I rather like him._

Angela moved her head slightly. _Don’t Ava. Stop now. There is always another way._

When Ava didn’t respond, Angela took that to mean as a bad thing. Now that she figured out the game plan behind using Cold Oak, she wanted to get there all the faster. If she left the kid with JoAnne and David, she could make up for lost time. Maybe she could put a stop to this before more people got killed.

Deciding that was her course of action, she slid off the rock and snatched up her staff. She looked to find JoAnne and David being held by the two demons from earlier. The kid was standing there smiling at her. It wasn’t friendly but one that was laced with evil. She looked at the kid and ventured cautiously, “So this is what it has come down to?”

“I don’t know how they got here,” the kid shrugged his shoulders.

Angela narrowed her eyes. The urgency was that she had to get to the town and stop the psychics from playing this deadly game but she couldn’t leave JoAnne and David hanging out to dry. It was eerily like a dream that she had a few weeks ago. In it she was running and it looked like a forest but even then it was hard to tell. She came to a clearing and in the middle was a bell and on either side was a huge pit. Suspended above each pit were two cages. In one were Sam and Dean and in the other were Andy, Ava and a few others that she assumed were psychics. Next to the bell stood Azazel and he was grinning that stupid grin at her and telling her that she had a choice. She could live up to her promise and save Sam and Dean or do what she did all the time and save innocents. She could only choose one.

Angela remembered that she refused to play along and the demon dropped both. What she did she couldn’t remember but she remembered that she leaped after Sam and Dean and threw something in her hand in the other direction at the others. That was her way. She would try to save them all. Looking at the kid she replied, “I think you do. So you thought that by following my lead you would lead these two small fry to me?”

Al smiled that grin he had, “How long have you known?”

“Since the mutt. I found it strange that it was only you since I know that there were others who were marked as malachi but they were never considered for the big post except for two. Besides once I focused I was able to smell your blood. Very clever with the name… Alighieri.”

Alighieri then laughed as his eyes flickered to the black but a touch of burning embers in his eyes. “I wondered if that was what gave it away. So tell me what does it feel like meeting someone who was once just like you after all this time?”

“A bad dream like Lewis Carroll,” Angela replied. She quickly assessed the situation. JoAnne and David had their knives which she guess was treated with silver and would probably piss their captors off but it would be enough. Alighieri was another story but she could handle it. She had to. “So how did you get the unlucky meat suit?”

“Special order,” Alighieri replied. “Ever since you gave it to me during our little contest, I pretty much was worn down. After pulling some favors it was off with the old and on with the new.”

“And you sold your soul to hell for it.” Angela shook her head in exasperation but had a smirk on her face. “You always did think that by being the strongest was the key. That was why you lost and you hated it that I dared to show you mercy but let’s face it, then you were human. Now you are hell’s bitch and to think we were friends once.”

“And you betrayed me. You made it so that I was the sacrificial lamb and you set him free.”

“A mistake that I regret to this day,” Angela replied in all sincerity. “And if I recall, you were the one who decided to do it once I found out how to do it. So we’re both guilty parties here.”

“Keep telling yourself that. I heard that your last penance was more or less entertainment. At least for those who enjoyed some slicing and dicing.” Alighieri grinned at Angela knowing that to be reminded of that was an equivalent to torture.

“Can we just kill them now? She converted our prize bitch Cerebus.”

 _So that’s the name of the mutt_ , Angela thought. Well at least it was better than calling it ‘hey you’ or ‘mutt’ or something equally mundane. Then again if she called it by name that would make it harder to get rid of it and then trying to explain it to the boys and Bobby…

Alighieri looked at the demon holding David who had spoken. He replied, “Who said anything about killing? We all have a job and that is to get the queen to the king… eventually.”

“No duh, Alighieri,” Angela replied as she crossed her arms while holding her staff. “I figure you just want to drive home the point that I am faced with a choice of dealing with you or abandoning the cadets here and go save the psychics in Cold Oak from the Miss America pageant that Azazel is having them do.”

“Smart as well as beautiful. It’s no wonder he likes you,” Alighieri replied with a knowing grin. It was fun to tease. He didn’t know for certain but Lenya gave him the bare hints. So far only he, Lenya and Azazel had a clue. It was like a gold nugget to save against a rainy day.

Angela kept hearing things like that and had no idea what they were talking about and frankly it was getting annoying. Still she couldn’t be brash and impulsive since JoAnne and David were in the line of fire and she couldn’t risk getting them hurt over something that could be just a nugget to mess with her. She toyed with the idea of calling for the mutt but she would rather not do it unless she absolutely needed to.

She had to admit that it was a bit of a shock when she recognized someone that was once a friend that was now a demon. It was another long story that would eventually have to be told to Sam and Dean since it seemed that her problems affected them because the other side seemed to like to use them to make her life miserable. She could admit that she had been had for a short time but when the kid appeared without so much as a scratch after she took care of the mutt, that was when she started suspecting something. Now that she knew, she was in for a rough ride since Alighieri was holding a grudge even though she tried to save him from the pit and that was what the other side wanted her to do.

Now here they were again and now she understood why Azazel brought up that contest from so long ago. It was somewhat of a payback now. Looking at JoAnne and David, she made eye contact and asked wordlessly if they trusted her.

JoAnne and David listened as the whole conversation play out. As far as they were concerned, this was something from a past they knew nothing about and was a means of torturing their friend. JoAnne didn’t care about something that Angela did or did not allegedly do so long ago. True that it may have had an impact on today but what had been done was done. They had to move on. Right now she and David needed to find a way out of this mess. She glanced at David and made a slight movement that was inconsequential to a casual observer.

David responded likewise and turned to wait for his cue from Angela. When she looked at him, he gave a nod to indicate that he trusted her and was ready. His knife was in his pocket and he had carefully worked his hand into it and now held the knife. He was ready. A look at JoAnne told him she was ready too.

Angela accepted the response and said, “Well I guess we should get this over with.”

“Now that is no fun that dejected tone,” Alighieri replied. “This was meant to get your blood up. After all I know that right now one of those psychics is going to make her move again. Who knows it might be against… now what was his name? Oh yes Sam.”

At that moment JoAnne reacted and thrust her knife into the demon. The grip was loosened and she was free. Then being who she was, she dropped into her hand to hand fighting stance and actually punched and kicked. It wasn’t surprising that David followed suit with that. It provided a distraction for Alighieri and allowed Angela to make her move.

Using her staff, Angela vaulted forward and kicked Alighieri square in the chest to send him flying back where he hit a tree with surprising force. Angela twirled her staff as she reached into her pockets and fished out the rune stones that she discovered on a rest break. She shouted, “Jo, catch!” She tossed them and added, “Use them on the demons!” She then turned her focus towards Alighieri and prepared for his move.

Alighieri was on his feet quick and his eyes switched to the demon look. He was pissed. He had been given orders but there was the implication that there was some leeway allowed. Well he would take that chance with the leeway. Standing there he lifted his hand and sent Angela flying with his power. It had been a bitch not being able to exercise it as much as he wanted to while in her company but here was the chance for some fun. He didn’t let up as he sent her flying several times, the last had her drop that stupid staff. He took pleasure as he say the dark stain on her jacket become just a little bit larger.

Angela had been thrown by physical force and by psychic power before and it always hurt bloody hell. This time it hurt more because before she could recover, she was tossed about again and it jarred her injured arm some more. She could feel the muscles spasm but she wasn’t going to let up. The last toss had her land hard on the ground. She felt her bad elbow pop. Great.

“Well you haven’t changed much. You always did enjoy being somebody else’s punching bag.” Alighieri walked forward. He wasn’t concerned with the two cadets. If they exorcised the others that was fine. They were supposed to clear the way anyway. He got close and kicked Angela in the side. “So does this bring back memories?” He rolled her over with his foot and was prepared to stomp down on her.

“No.”

The foot came down but even with a dislocated elbow, Angela brought her arms up and blocked the blow while gripping the foot. With a hard twist, she wrenched the foot and heard a sickening crack. She rolled at the same time to avoid retaliation and got back to her feet. She looked at Alighieri look at her with a murderous look. He was going to play rough and she knew that she was going to have to as well. That meant she had to tap into that which she rarely used and hope she didn’t kill someone in the process.

As Alighieri got to his feet with a slight stumble, Angela waited. When he started forward, she tapped into her powers and felt her eye teeth elongate. She felt the familiar hum that she felt when she let Lenya have it in Hudson. It reverberated throughout her veins much like it did when she tapped into her healing powers. When Alighieri started forward, she let it loose and sent the demon flying only she didn’t have to use her hands. She walked forward and couldn’t help herself, “Is this the little fun you were hoping for Alighieri? There’s plenty of it.”

Alighieri didn’t expect to be tossed about like a rag doll. He did expect it when she tapped into her powers and actually relished the sight of seeing those glowing orbs. He wondered if the humans she hung around with had actually seen that side of her for a moment. He grinned as she advanced. This was definitely the fun that he wanted. Time to see that famous Shadow Chaser strength and speed. He replied as he got to his feet, “This is definitely fun.” His eyes flickered for a moment as they reverted to their demon state. He started running towards Angela.

Angela started running just as fast towards Alighieri. It was just like that final showdown during that stupid contest only this time there were no rules. It was kill or be killed just like then and anything goes. That even meant dirty tricks were optional. That was fine with her. She felt her power surge in her blood as she put an extra spurt into her legs and bounded forward.

They collided with tremendous force that it sounded like a crackle of thunder as they met in midair and landed hard on the ground. Each was delivering strikes that were hard and fast, each one capable of killing a normal human if it struck true at the desired located. Angela’s eyes were glowing intensely as she used everything she knew to block the more deadly strikes. She knew that eventually being hit as much as she was would wear her down but the same was equally true for Alighieri and she knew a few tricks that would end this.

At one point they locked limbs and each tugged on each other to try and gain the upper hand. They pushed and pulled each other into trees and rocks. When Angela was forced into a tree something flashed in her mind and it was clear. She saw Sam being tossed through a fence and he was writhing on the ground in pain. In front of her she saw Jake’s face. It changed back to Alighieri’s and it was enough for the demon to slam her into the tree again which loosened her grip and flung her aside.

Angela countered by letting her body slide on the ground and digging her hand in along with her feet, she righted herself as she came to a stop. Her hand was bloodied now from the rocks and anything else that littered the floor but that was not important. Using the stopping force as a means of gaining momentum, she sprang forwards and speared the demon with her shoulder. It was effective but she didn’t expect the demon to hammer on it. At that moment another image flashed and this time she could sense pain as she saw Jake dislocate Sam’s shoulder.

Angela wasn’t going to give up though and fought through the pain and pinned the demon to the tree. She growled, “You’ve been planning this since the beginning with Azazel haven’t you?” Her fists curled into the fabric of the demon’s jacket.

“Hey we set the conditions and it’s your choice to turn on the juice and use it,” Alighieri countered as he brought his arms down on hers creating a muscle spasm on her bad arm and used his strength to give a good punch to the chest.

Angela felt her ribs crack with the punch as she landed hard on her back. Of course Azazel would do something like this. He had been after her for years and had used all sorts of means to get her to tap into her powers. Well he had it and she could feel how addicting it was to use them without restraint but she would never let herself be that way. Powers could be controlled just like urges. The demon would get what he wanted but on her terms. Right now though, she needed to finish this and get to Sam before Jake killed him.

As she rolled over to get up, she noticed that her staff wasn’t that far away. She gave a wry grin as she saw it. She had one more trick up her sleeve and she had worked on it while Alighieri wasn’t looking. It was just a matter of getting it. She could do it since she had summoned things before. Just before she could do so, something up her spine prickled and her hearing picked up something. Placing her hands and feet as if she were going to do a push up, she used all her strength to lift herself into the air and twisting her body, she twisted into an upright position just as the demon took a swipe with a branch that he found.

Landing on her feet Angela stuck out her hand towards her staff and it sailed effortlessly to it. She twirled it to back into an attack formation and then struck with it. She clouted the demon on the side and then twisted to avoid his counter attack. She swung hard and fast until she had him pinned and thrust the middle against his chest and watched as it started to burn. She grinned and her chuckle sounded almost maniacal as she said, “Forgot that I know my sigils and how to make holy water didn’t ya?”

Alighieri grunted in pain as it burned. He should have remembered that and he couldn’t win this. She probably had other sigils drawn onto the staff and it was just a matter of her using them. He also just then received word to retreat from his superior. Bearing the pain, he pushed her away and said, “Well this has been fun. Glad the queen still has the juice.” He was then gone.

The adrenaline didn’t wear off as Angela looked around for JoAnne and David. She found them exorcising the last of the demons. “You all right?” When she received word of confirmation she started towards them but was told to go and that they would handle it. She obeyed. She had to get to Sam.


	10. Chapter 10

Ava looked at Sam as she wiped away the crocodile tears. Of course he would have figured it out. It was surprising that it took him this long but at least it was after she did away with the next weak link… that Andy. He was such a dork and pathetic. If he had been shipped here earlier, he would have been dead within the first five seconds. But he had to arrive with Sam and because Sam knew more about what was going on she had to be careful so playing the damsel in distress card was the rule. And it actually worked! Well until now.

Then there was that mysterious bitch that started trying to shake up things and warn Sam. She knew that Sam heard her because she saw how he stopped and then that business earlier when he rubbed the back of his head like something hit him. Oh yeah she knew that there was someone else out there. And lo and behold it turned out to be the one the demon called the queen. Okay so she didn’t get the chess references until later but it was fun trying to send the Acheri after the bitch.

What she didn’t expect was for the bitch to actually take control for a while and stop the demon. The yellow eyed demon said that she was weaponless but he failed to mention that she had other talents. Then she heard the message. That sweet pathetic voice telling Sam that she was coming to help and telling him to stick together… it was rather romantic in a way if it could be taken that way but a major annoyance considering that weakling Andy heard her as well and actually talked to her.

Well she talked to the bitch too and it was amusing to hear the bitch reply and tell her to turn back and stop. Yeah right. Like there was any other way but to be the best and kill off the weaklings. It was kill or be killed and surely the bitch understood that. She looked at Sam and said, “I can’t believe I started off having dreams. Even talking with that bitch in my head was interesting. She was so pathetic and she’s supposed to be this big bad soldier?”

Sam couldn’t believe that Ava killed all those people in a span of five months. She had killed Andy and it was all because of some contest that Yellow Eyes wanted them to do. The demon had given them all some of his blood and that was why they had these abilities and it wasn’t for some army like Gordon Walker said but for one to be a leader. That was an enigma in of itself and Sam realized that he more than wished Dean and Angela were there. At least Angela would be able to shed some light on the subject and Dean would be there to do what he always said he would and that was to look after him. Lilly was right in some ways; that this was turning into a nightmare. When Ava mentioned Angela, he couldn’t help but respond, “Angie?”

“That’s what her name is? Certainly doesn’t sound tough. I wonder how she felt having that demon have fun with her.”

“You set the demon on her?”

“Oh yeah. For some reason the yellowed eyed demon brought her here but made her trek through miles of woods. He said that she was going to try and save us but the fun needed to happen first. So I gave it a shot,” Ava replied as she shrugged her shoulders. “I’m pretty sure there are other surprises out there. ‘The queen must get to the king.’ Yeah right. Sure the queen makes it but will it be in time?”

Sam had started putting pieces together in his mind. Yellow Eyes said it was all about him and the others like him but he never really mentioned Angela’s part in it. The saving part was typical of her since she would do that but… He realized then that the demon was getting her before she got him. Sam knew as well as Dean that her vendetta with Yellow Eyes went way back and she had thwarted him by hiding the psychics she did find. He replied, “What do you mean by that?”

Ava gave a slight chuckle. “Please Sam. It’s exactly what it means. The bloodsucker is supposed to get here but how and when is up to whoever plays along. I’m not impressed but no matter. I’m the undefeated heavyweight champion here.”

“You don’t have to do this Ava,” Sam tried to talk her out of it.

“I really do like you Sam but…” Ava gave a shrug of her shoulders and she put her fingers to her forehead. Playtime was over. She was the champ and the demon did say only one of them would make it out alive. Well it was going to be her.

Sam watched as the familiar black smoke slinked in through the crack in the salt line. He tensed to get ready as the Acheri materialized and was ready to strike. It was totally unexpected when Jake came up from behind and killed Ava by breaking her neck. He was stunned by it and it was some relief that the demon was no longer going to try and kill them. He told Jake that it would be a good idea that they get out of town.

“But what about the demon?”

“The demon was being controlled by Ava,” Sam replied. It was a good idea to get out of town but if Angela was there and she was on her way, it would probably be a good idea to wait. “I don’t think it will give us problems and there is a friend of mine who is coming. She’s in the same boat as us but she won’t let anything happen to us.”

“Angela.”

Sam whirled to face Jake. “How…?”

“The yellow eyed demon. He told me. I’m sorry. I do like you.” Jake truly was sorry. He did like Sam and he did try to keep them alive. Yet the yellow eyed demon told him the score. Only one of them was going to make it out of there alive.

“You don’t have to do this. We can make it out together,” Sam replied. The situation was getting way out of hand. Yellow Eyes was trying to make killers out of them all. He didn’t expect it when Jake let loose his strength on him and sent him flying. For a brief moment he had an image flash through his mind. He saw Angela flying through the air just like he was and she hit a tree. Who she was fighting he didn’t see but it felt like it was happening right then and there.

It was hard trying not to seriously hurt Jake since he wanted them both to make it out alive. It was taxing since Jake was using his strength and was determined to beat the crap out of him. At one point Jake hit him in the shoulder and he felt the pop. His shoulder was dislocated it hurt like a bitch but his adrenaline was up. Somehow he managed to get the upper hand and beat Jake unconscious. It was then he saw the iron spoke that Jake had ripped off like it was nothing. He picked it up and held it up ready to deal a killing blow.

_I’ve killed many things in my life and nothing is more life changing than taking a human life._

Sam paused as he remembered her saying that. It was after they left the cabin and at Bobby’s. He had found her in her training area just sitting on the balance beam deep in thought as she stared at the empty circle. They talked for a while until he finally tackled what happened at that cabin. It was then that she started in on crazy talk about it not being a good idea to hang around her. Sam had the sense to realize that she was releasing tension and a flurry of thoughts that seemed to be strung together logically. It was then she talked about being pretty much an agent of death and of all things that line came to mind.

Looking at the unconscious Jake, it was tempting to deal back Jake in his own coin but that line stuck in his mind. It occurred to him during that conversation that even though those hunters had that stuff in them, she still saw them as human. Maybe it was a little different to her but he could see that she was right. She wouldn’t do it and he couldn’t either. He dropped the rod and got up feeling suddenly exhausted and started walking through the town.

Along the way, he saw some movement and tensed slightly. When he saw who it was, he let out a sigh of relief. “Angie?”

“Sam?”

Sam turned and saw his brother Dean and Bobby coming towards him. It was hard to believe. The people he wanted the most were there. He started towards his brother and he didn’t have to look to see that Angela was coming towards him. All he felt was relief that this ordeal was over. He heard his brother shout something and then a sharp pain in his back and then it went numb.

****

Dean wished he had superhuman strength or at least Angela around to lift the tree trunk so he could drive the Impala past the roadblock. Hell if she could lift him and Sam as dead weight, he was sure she could lift it. Unfortunately she wasn’t there so he was stuck with leaving the Impala behind and going in on foot.

Dean peered into the trunk looking for things that might be useful. He handed gear to Bobby including her bag of medical supplies when his eyes lighted on the swords lying there side by side in their carrying tubes. Without hesitation he grabbed the one that held Absolution and slung it over his shoulder. The fact that Angela didn’t even have it where she was seemed like the equivalent of her being naked even though he knew she would be resourceful with whatever she had in her pockets. Picking up his shotgun, he shut the trunk with an air of finality and followed Bobby towards Cold Oak.

Walking the trail Dean had to admit that it felt weird carrying her sword on his back but it also felt right that he was bringing it. He had been hesitant at first when she offered it to him to hold and use when they staged their stand against the bastards that poisoned Sam. The last time he held it, he had it pointed at her with the intention to kill. As if sensing his hesitation, she explained everything to him.

_I know you know that Absolution is not your average sword Dean. It is unique since it does more or less possess a soul and is pretty much alive. It can be wielded by anyone as long as it is in the hand of someone with a good heart. Just let him know you and remember what I said in Hudson about him._

Dean had followed her advice and held her sword and nothing bad happened. He still had trouble believing that the sword possessed a soul or spirit or whatever the damn thing was called but he was willing to take her word for it. Later at Bobby’s she had shown him how to use Orion and he understood then how Sam had been able to kill a demon.

_Appearances can be deceiving Dean. You above most people should know that considering what business you’re in._

It was funny how things she had said kept coming up but they bore such weight in worth now. They led to other thoughts that were related to his and Bobby’s search for finding her and Sam. He shifted the strap of the case better on his shoulder and adjusted the shotgun in his hands. They were almost there. They were almost to Sam. He glanced at Bobby to find the older hunter deep in thought but also alert.

Bobby hadn’t said much to Dean on the drive to Cold Oak except to explain about the town being so haunted that all the living citizens just up and left it. It made sense for the thing that took Sam and Angela to use a place like that. The legend of the place itself was enough to draw supernatural activity.

When they encountered the roadblock, Bobby said the only thing that he could, “Looks like we walk in the rest of the way.”

Dean had responded rather calmly and switched the engine off and opened the trunk of the car. Bobby had been surprised at some of the stuff that was in the trunk and he could only surmise that some of it was because of Angela. He didn’t even have to ask about the two black tubes that were stashed in there. As soon as Dean grabbed one, he guessed that Angela’s sword was in there. He had offered to carry it but Dean just slung the case over his shoulder and started walking. Then almost as an afterthought, Dean opened the driver side of the car, reached in and pulled a little wooden figure off the dash. He paused to look at it before placing it in his jacket pocket.

It was a little while down the road that he asked about the figure. “What’s with the doll?”

“It’s a kachina and a very special one. If things get ugly, it might come in handy,” Dean replied with a slight shrug of his shoulders. “Got it on the first case Sam and I worked with Angie on. I saw what it could do.”

Bobby nodded and replied, “Anasazi magic?”

“Yeah.”

Bobby was familiar with it but he had never actually seen something that had been infused with such magic. If Dean had seen firsthand what it could do then maybe they did have a chance against whatever waited for them at the abandoned town. He adjusted his pace to match Dean’s as the elder Winchester started picking up speed due to anticipation of being reunited with his brother.

Night was falling fast and there were signs of rain and it reminded Dean too much of that standoff in Tennessee but hell it was a fight for Sam then just like now was. It was getting repetitive in that anything that had to do with the psychics or Yellow Eyes that led to protecting Sam but Dean wouldn’t have it any other way. He still hated the fact that Dad left him a heavy burden on his shoulders, like he might have to kill Sam. He couldn’t do that. He would try to save Sam or die trying. Angela understood that and heartily agreed. True she never badmouthed Dad but Dean suspected that she highly disapproved of his choice of words and that girl had been working harder than they had trying to figure the whole damn thing out.

He found that in between cases once she got back on the bus with him and Sam that she spent her evenings on her computer pad thing doing hell knows what and writing on sheets of paper. He thought Ash was bad with tracking things but she was something else. Sometimes she would sit and stare at a single image for hours. He knew because he caught her at it before the last case and this whole mess started. It occurred to him then that maybe he should have gone through her stuff and maybe he would have figured out where they were sooner. He may not have been able to decipher any of her techno babble but he had Bobby and together they would have figured it out. He had little idea though that what she had written down and had stored on her computer was data that Ash had been sending her and she was doing cross checking.

The walk was plenty of time to go over thoughts and everything that had happened. Dean even toyed with the idea of at least kicking Sam’s ass for letting himself get taken and worrying the crap out of him. Angela, he was tempted to kick hers but knowing what she could do, he would rather play a prank on her and being nice he won’t rope Sam into helping him especially since he was intending to kick his ass. On an impulse he put his hand in his pocket and fingered the kachina doll as if to tell the thing ‘shut up.’ The response was a friendly nip that didn’t hurt and Dean gave a slight scowl since he never figured out how to keep it from doing that.

It was a welcome sight to see Sam alive and well. It didn’t matter that he was holding his arm and it flopping a little funny. Sam was alive. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Angela running out of the woods looking like she had gone ten rounds with a wendigo but she had a smile of relief as she started jogging forward. Finally the nightmare was going to be over… or so it seemed.

Dean saw him coming for Sam. He cried out, “Sam look out!”

It was too late and the guy stabbed Sam in the back. Dean broke into a cold sprint crying out, “No.” It barely registered that Bobby gave chase after the guy and that Angela ran just as fast to get to Sam.

Dean caught his brother as he started to fall to his knees. Dean always caught Sam when he fell. That’s what big brothers were supposed to do. “I gotcha Sam. Let me take a look.” The blood on his hand had him gasping for air as he tried to keep Sam awake and he could tell his brother was trying too as well. “Come on Sam. I’m here like I always told you. I’m always here for my pain in the ass little brother.” He saw Angela on her knees trying to do her best. “See Angie’s here. She’s gonna patch you up. She fixes everything remember?”

Dean felt the tears prickle in his eyes as he watched Angela try to fix his brother. He saw her hands glowing and pressing on the wound and he wondered what she was doing but didn’t care at the moment. As long as she tried to help Sam; that was the important thing. Dean looked at Sam and he was fading. “Come on Angie. Please.” He could see her panicked face as well as it overshadowed her own pain and exhaustion. Looking again at Sam he felt his brother go limp and he was gone. “Sam?”

At the realization that Sam was gone, Dean grabbed his brother into a tight embrace. A small part of him thought that if he held tight enough Sam wouldn’t leave him but he knew that wasn’t true. Tears in his eyes and gritting his teeth, he let out, “Sam!” It was followed by a sound that he had never heard before but all he could see and feel was the limp form of his brother.

****

Angela felt a little guilty for leaving JoAnne and David alone but they had already exorcised one demon and they were in the process of exorcising the other. She did check and ask if they were all right and she was prepared to go in and help them since they were still new hunters. She held her elbow as she approached with care. She knew she was going to have to find a hard enough surface to pop her elbow back in but at least the cold and the adrenaline kept it from swelling so bad.

JoAnne knew that time was essence and that she and David could handle the demon. Besides that hand held devil’s trap that Angela had tossed them worked pretty well. She was going to have to ask her mom about that after she got out of there and to a phone and called her uncle so they weren’t punished or anything like that. She saw Angela and waved her off. “We got this. Go.”

Angela nodded and took off. Now that she was on her own she could put that speed of hers to the test. She was considered the fastest amongst the staff at the academy and she could keep up with a car driving 25-30 mph. Her adrenaline was up and that sense of urgency when she saw those images of Sam getting beaten by that other psychic had her near to overdoing it.

She gave a whistle and could hear the hell mutt respond with a bark as it caught up with her. As soon as it was running beside her she said, “Okay Cerebus. Stay with Jo and Barcalow and watch out for them. When they come to the town, go with them and protect them from Azazel’s crew until they get to the town. Ok?”

The hell hound gave a slight whine of disappointment that he wasn’t going to stay with his master but he would follow her orders anyway. He gave a bark and turned around and headed back to the humans that she had been concerned with protecting. He had been bred to rip them to shreds when ordered to but his new master was different. She could have killed him but she didn’t. Instead she saved him and for that he would follow. He chose her.

Angela was surprised that the mutt actually obeyed when she used its name. At least it was better than saying ‘hey mutt’ or something along those lines. It was a reassurance though to know that there was someone or rather something looking after the cadets while she finished her primary objective which was get to Sam. She modified it though to be ‘get to Sam and the other psychics.’ It was her own rule to this game which she intended to beat one way or another.

She left behind her staff realizing that she wouldn’t need it anymore and carrying it would slow her down. Besides she had already opened the gates with her powers so she might as well make use of them. She would not kill though unless it came down to that. She would fight until the end to convince Jake not to do anything to Sam. She had to try.

Along the way she popped her elbow back in the joint but it was not done in her preferred way. Grabbing her bad arm while running with her good hand, she applied pressure and pulled. She gritted her teeth from the pain of the bite that was still healing and the joint popping back in but she didn’t break her stride. She popped the joint back in with practiced ease. It didn’t help though that she opened her wound again and the red stain was getting bigger and she could feel the muscle spasm because she strained the cut muscle too much. Taking her hand away, Angela could see her own blood smeared on her good hand. She wiped it off on her jacket knowing that it was probably going to freak one or both boys out.

Sam knew a little bit better than Dean that if she lost a significant amount of blood, she needed to replenish that by drinking the stuff. So far she had been careful but with the way things were going and if Sam saw… She would just have to be careful in getting there and once she diffused any situation that was there, then she would let Dean play doctor. He needed the practice and it was be a good and not good time to test his knowledge.

The cuts on her hands from grabbing the ground were healed pretty well and the dull throb in her chest from the cracked ribs was another thing that would mean vacation time after this. Not to mention a chewing out. Oh well. She kept running until she made it to the edge of Cold Oak. It put her on the wrong side of town given what she remembered from that image she saw of Sam and the other one… Jake it was.

It was easy to skirt along the edges but slippery mud and with damaged limbs and cracked ribs; she might as well be able to have been trying to run underwater. She used the mud to her advantage and slid along the ground on her boots. It was like ice skating almost as she slid along until she caught a familiar sight. It was a bit of a stumble trying to come out of the trees and she was sure that she freaked Sam out a little but he relaxed as soon as he realized it was her.

“He’s all right. Thank God,” Angela breathed out more to herself. She also noticed two others coming and she recognized them right away. It was Bobby and Dean. Finally this would be finished.

Starting a little slow she pushed herself onto the balls of her feet and started jogging and sliding towards the trio. She was aware of relief and happiness but it was quickly marred when she noticed something in the shadows. She didn’t have to squint but focus since she could see in the dark and what she saw had her break into a sprint.

She saw Jake coming towards Sam and she saw the knife. The intentions were clear to her just as they were to Dean. It was Dean that shouted for Sam to look out and she put an extra spurt into her muscles even though they were burning from exhaustion. She had to get there. She was faster than this. She could outrun Fang Boy on his best day. She could get there. Pain was meaningless at this point. She had to stop him.

It was like watching everything in slow motion as Angela saw the knife thrust into Sam’s back. She heard Dean’s voice shout but all she could focus on was Sam. There was a fence in her way so she vaulted over it and kept going and slid in for hone just as Dean caught Sam as Bobby ran past them to catch up with Jake.

Angela could hear Dean babbling at Sam trying to keep him awake. Her breath was coming in hitches, the only indication that she was in a panic as she assessed the injury. It was hard because Dean wanted to see for himself and had his hand pressed against the wound. She tapped on it to have him move it and when he did she peered at it.

It was a serious one. She was no doctor or surgeon but she had the sense to know that it was bad. There was only one thing she was sure could help and she had to muster everything to do it. Relying on Dean to support Sam, she focused like she did on the stupid hell hound. She focused on the wound and like before her hands started to glow.

It was working. She could feel it but it wasn’t enough. She could hear Dean begging her to do something while trying to reassure Sam that she was there to fix everything. It pained her that Dean had so much faith in her and she was clearly losing the battle. She poured heart and soul into her ability but it was for naught. She felt Sam slipping away and the glow from her hands died. She didn’t will it to stop. It was like her power knew that it was futile but she wasn’t willing to accept it.

She did a flinging motion to try and get it to work again. No way was this going to happen. Not again. She kept trying while Dean gripped his brother tightly.

_Well played my queen, but know that you can’t save them all no matter what you try._

As soon as Angela heard Azazel’s voice in her mind, it was like breaking of the dam. Once again the damn demon took something from her. She had been counted on and once again made to fail. She heard Dean say something and the tone that came out… Something broke and everything painful came out in a raw a primal scream.


	11. Chapter 11

JoAnne and David felt and heard the scream just as they found them. To JoAnne it felt like everything that could hurt a person came out in that scream. It sent a chill down her spine that one person could have that much pain come out. She visibly shivered and was partially comforted by David’s touch. She watched the broken form of the most formidable woman she had ever met look up at the night sky and finished the scream.

David had never seen a tough woman cry. Even JoAnne’s crying wasn’t crying. It was more of a ‘beat the crap out of everything until I feel better crying’ thing. Having a kid sister he knew the female version of his species was capable of it but to see someone that he had always seen as tough just break down and let it all out like that, it was weird. He felt JoAnne shiver slightly at the sound and put an arm around her shoulder.

“We’re too late,” JoAnne stated the obvious. It was not meant to be sarcastic or anything but it was her way of putting reality into focus for her.

“No Jo,” David replied as he understood, “She feels that she was too late.”

“Maybe that’s what the demon wanted all along Dave. This was a means to give her something to work for and then make it so that her work was for nothing.”

“I was thinking the same thing. Nothing breaks a person down more than knowing that everything they did to get to a certain point was for nothing. And yet I think that this will turn her down a path that will swallow her whole.”

“You’re thinking revenge.”

“First the one who killed Sam and then the demon but it might not stop there. And after what we saw back there in the woods… Who knows where it will stop.”

JoAnne saw that was a very real possibility. Bodine had sought revenge on those who taunted and tormented him and that led to the fiasco at the Point. If it came to that with Angela, JoAnne got the feeling that it would be doubly worse and feared that what she had read about her in her mother’s books would come back but ten times worse. The books described Angela as a legend among demon slayers and that she had killed more than any hunter during those years. Those few she did worked with said nothing except that she was a force not to be trifled with. It left a lot to speculation.

They could have speculated while standing there but they both knew that the right thing to do was to go over and offer any help they could. Slowly they started walking with JoAnne signaling to the hell hound that he was to follow them. She made her stride purposeful and hoped that Dean or Angela wouldn’t lash out at them for sneaking up on them.

When they came close enough, JoAnne waved David to stay back and took a step forward. “Dean?”

Dean was clutching his brother feeling the tears. Angela tried but Sam died. It wasn’t her fault. She tried. Sam was dead. He was supposed to look out for Sam, save him from whatever evil wanted to mess with him but he was dead. That scream echoed the very pain in his heart. The demon took everything from him. First Mom, then Dad and now Sam. Sam was dead. His baby brother was dead and it was his fault.

_Dean?_

Dean heard his name. It didn’t come from Angela but from someone else. Still clutching Sam, he turned to look at who was talking to him. Recognizing who it was, the name came out in a choked whisper, “JoAnne?”

Any other time, JoAnne would have been pleased that Dean followed her request that he call her by her name proper but not at this moment. The way how Dean said her name nearly broke her own heart by his grief. She slowly kneeled and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I know Dean. It’s not right I know but right now we need to get Sam off the ground. Okay?” It was like talking to a little child but anything else would have surely gotten noncooperation from Dean.

Dean heard what was being said to him and it took a moment for everything to register. Sam was on the ground. It was cold and wet outside and Sam could catch a chill if left out in the cold too long. Sam was always a girl when it came to getting sick. He gave a slow and dumb nod and started to stand while holding Sam. It was then that he saw Angela staring at the muddy ground with a blank expression on her face. He looked at JoAnne and asked, “Angie?”

JoAnne nodded as she helped Dean up. It was then that she noticed that the older hunter that had chased after the killer had come back. She made a motion with her hand to come and help. She didn’t have to beckon to David for he was there to help her stand Dean up with Sam. She was careful to not touch Sam leaving Dean to do the lifting work.

****

As soon as Bobby saw the bastard knife Sam, he took off running trying to bring him down. He knew well enough that Dean’s first thoughts would be on Sam and not the bastard so it fell to him to chase after him. Being as old as he was, he could run but it wasn’t fast enough to keep up with the guy. Bobby lost him before he even had a chance and he was itching to at least shoot him in the leg. The rest of the guy would be unrecognizable once Dean and Angela got done with him. Now the bastard was gone and there was nothing to do but go back and help Dean with Sam.

The scream was piercing but what startled Bobby more was that the sheer force of it shattered glass from some of the buildings. Looking ahead he saw Angela looking up at the sky finishing that long and agonizing scream. He was no fool and could guess that Sam didn’t make it.

He walked at a steady pace not quite wanting to believe it but seeing Dean clutching Sam tightly and Angela kneeling there and staring at the ground, it was very real. Sam was gone. He also had the sense to realize that they were not alone.

The girl was kneeling next to Dean and talking to him and the boy was standing there as if waiting for an order. Bobby could tell that they weren’t out to hurt anyone and was surprised when the girl motioned for him to come on over and help Angela up who hadn’t moved at all. The boy helped the girl and together they helped Dean pick Sam up.

Bobby walked up to Angela who was still sitting on her knees. It was the first time Bobby got a good look at her. He could see the left sleeve of her jacket torn and stained with blood. He could see patches of blood on her jacket that looked like she had wiped her hands to clean them off and she had dirt all over like she had been out in the woods doing whatever but Bobby could see that the… whatever had been an ordeal. Looking at her, he wasn’t sure if he should kneel and help her up or offer a hand.

Neither was needed for as soon ad the boy and girl helped Dean with Sam, Angela stood up in one fluid motion. She didn’t look at anyone but at a downwards angle. All she said was, “Take care of Sam. That’s the most important part.” Then saying nothing else, she turned on her heel and walked away towards a building. A few minutes later she came out holding two bodies slung over her shoulders and she was walking down the street with them.

Bobby was in half a mind to follow her but he did have the sense to know that when she was serious about something, it was best to listen. Like hell he was going to let her go off and do something stupid and he could see visibly that she was in pain from whatever injuries she was trying to hide at the moment not to mention the emotional pain. He looked at the others and said, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll go check it out.” He then followed after her leaving the three of them to take care of Sam.

Bobby found Angela in something that looked like a corral or something and she was digging. He supposed that he could be grateful that she wasn’t doing anything foolish like necromancy or something like that but he didn’t like not knowing where her mind was. It was as bad when she showed up like a kicked puppy and he invited her to stay. She kept a strange sort of focus that made it look like she was walking on autopilot but Bobby had discovered it was a means of garnering focus towards a goal. That time it was training to be better. This time though he didn’t know and he was worried.

The bodies she had carried out were lying on the ground. One was a girl and her neck was at an odd angle. Bobby surmised that her neck was broken. The other was boy and by the looks of things something tore him up pretty bad. Nearby was a small pile of dirt and it was fresh too. So there were three that were dead and Sam… Was this her way of accepting everything?

Bobby edged closer to the edge of the grave she was digging and noticed that in a short amount of time she had dug a substantial amount of ground and with a rusty old shovel. She was also working at a neck breaking pace. He could see her visibly wincing in pain but chose not to mention it. Instead he asked, “Are you going to finish that all by yourself?”

****

Angela didn’t feel much of anything after she let it all out. A small part of her couldn’t believe that Sam was dead. The other part registered the single thought that kept repeating over and over in her mind. She had failed.

 She had failed in the task that John Winchester had given her. She was supposed to watch over them. He made her swear upon the name of the goddess that she would watch over them. It was such an open ended promise at face value but deep down she knew that he had asked her to watch over them and protect them. He asked her to be Mary’s angel once again.

_“Angie I know it was you that came for my boys. First Dean with his pneumonia and then Sam with pertussis and then those times when they were alone. You came even though you didn’t have to. I am asking you this.” The tired face of John looked at her and Angela knew instantly where Sam got the puppy eye look._

_“You don’t know what you are asking.”_

_“I do. I want you to swear on the name of your goddess that you will do anything within your power to watch over my boys. Do that and I’ll tell you my plan.”_

_It was blackmail and Angela knew it and yet she didn’t have the heart to say no. They were Mary’s boys. They were John’s boys. Besides whatever John was planning he was going to need backup. She looked at him straight in the eye and said, “In the name of the goddess Isis, the patron of the dead, I pledge my oath that I will watch over Dean and Sam the sons of John and Mary Winchester within my power. May it be branded as bond.”_

Her word was bond. That was the way it always had been. As far as she knew she had never broken her word to anyone she made a vow to. Now that Sam was dead, did it mean that she broke it? Or did it simply mean that she failed? Failure seemed to be adequate enough. Hell she had a good track record in that regard and even when she didn’t make an oath.

She had failed Dean. He trusted her to keep Sam safe if he couldn’t and she failed. He had every right to hate her. She couldn’t see it now but it would sink in soon. Right now she couldn’t bear the look of pain on his face as he gripped his brother trying not to let go. Seeing that look of pain on Dean’s face though, it hurt but it also made her angry.

As she thought about her being a failure, the taunting of Azazel came to mind. He told her that she couldn’t save them all no matter what she did. Well it didn’t help that a bastard like him took something away from her. It didn’t help that he forced innocent people that had been chosen to give in to the base violent desires and kill each other to try and prove that they were the best. She hated that and she hated Azazel but worst of all, she hated Jake. She hated a human and she wanted his blood.

Normally she would have been repulsed by the idea but now there was nothing left to lose. Dean would have lost any faith he had in her and she failed in her oath to watch over both boys. The best of her abilities was never enough. It had to be perfection. She shouldn’t have met the boys face to face and then she wouldn’t have gotten too close. By getting close, she developed feelings like what she had for their mother. She had walked into her own trap again and now she had something precious taken away from her. Dean had something taken away from him. The demon would pay. Jake would pay. They would all pay and it would be a path that would be covered in blood until she was forgiven for her failures.

It took time but as her thoughts were becoming honed on a single goal, Angela became aware that JoAnne and David were there helping Dean with Sam and she was very much aware that Bobby was standing next to her. It was not about her. It was about Sam.

In a fluid motion, she stood up and not looking at anyone she said, “Take care of Sam. That’s the most important part.” Sam was the most important thing now and they needed to see to that. She had other business to take care of. It would help to focus on righting things. She did an about face and walked towards a building following the scent.

“I’m sorry Andy,” Angela said as she looked at the body of Andy. She had followed the blood to the building and to the room where she saw the two corpses. She had kneeled to look at Andy’s body.

The Acheri had gotten him good and she could tell that he had been in pain before he died. When someone died like that it usually was painful. She gazed sadly at him. She didn’t want him to die. He had been helpful in letting her know that Sam was okay then. Andy was innocent in all of this. She sighed as she closed Andy’s eyes gently.

Walking over to Ava she kneeled and looked at her. She sighed. “So sorry Ava. I wish that you hadn’t been so far gone but even then there was still time to go back. The demon screwed with us all.” Then like Andy she closed Ava’s eyes. She then picked up Ava and put her over the shoulder.

It wasn’t hard to pick up Andy and put him over the shoulder. It didn’t matter if she got Andy’s blood all over her. She was covered in it anyway and her hands were covered in it both dried and fresh. She walked out of the room paying no heed to the others watching her. She looked straight ahead and walked to find a place to bury the dead.

She had found where Lily was buried and decided that it would be best to have all of them buried together. She laid the bodies on the ground and looked for a shovel which turned out to be a rather rusty old thing and she would probably be digging with her hands but that didn’t matter. She took the thing and started digging with the same rapid energy she had when she dug those graves at the Point.

As she dug, her arm began to throb again and her elbow was sore. Her breathing became slightly labored as her chest ached. She wasn’t doing herself any favors by agitating her injuries but that pain was nothing compared to the pain she felt at the sight of Dean’s face holding tight to Sam. It made her dig faster to the point where she finally tossed the shovel out and started digging with her hands. The dirt tore at her nails and the rocks and other stuff was killer on her hands but the pain felt good. Any pain was good. The physical was nothing compared to the emotional.

“Are you going to finish that by yourself?”

Angela stopped her digging to find that Bobby had followed her to the corral where Lily had been buried. She dusted her hands slightly and finally looked at Bobby since he and Dean had arrived. She replied, “If I have to. It is only right.” She then turned to finish digging with her hands.

Bobby watched as Angela dug with her hands. He could see one of her arms spasm and her hands were getting messed up and she didn’t seem to care.

“You can use that piece of shit shovel if you want to help me Bobby.”

Bobby looked at Angela who was scooping out dirt. She paused to look at him for a moment, Bobby said nothing but picked up the shovel she abandoned and jumped into the grave. There wasn’t that much to dig but he recognized the invitation as one where they could talk but she was apologizing for being poor company. He could work with it. “Are you all right Angie?”

“What do you think Bobby? My arm hurts like hell because a hell hound thought I was a freaking chew toy and now it follows me around like a puppy and I don’t know why. A demon dislocates the elbow of same arm and throws me into trees and rocks and cracks my rib cage possible breaking a few and leaving a few bruises and I finally make it only to find that I can’t heal Sam and he’s dead. I failed Bobby.” At this point Angela had stopped digging and had turned to look at the grizzled hunter. She raised her hands in exasperation. “Dean now has no faith in me because I let him down. He trusted me to look after Sam if he couldn’t and how do I repay him? Sam dies and on my watch. I failed Bobby.”

Bobby paused not sure of what to say. It was clear that Angela was grieving and she was at a place that if pushed the wrong way, she could become something that neither brother would want her to be. “So how do you feel?”

“I’m hurt and I’m angry. Something was taken from me but that is nothing compared to what was taken from Dean and for that…” She clenched her good hand into a fist and whirled and punched through the wall of the grave leaving a perfect hole.

Bobby watched as Angela’s eyes glittered and changed into glowing orbs. He felt the vibration through the ground when she punched the hole. He knew she was strong but he had no idea. To him it seemed that her powers had emotional ties to her person. The screaming that shattered a few windows and now the punching the hole in the grave wall… maybe that was what the demon wanted all along. Then there was the fact that she was more upset that Dean was hurt said a lot about her character but never really got to the root of her feelings. He could see the anger and the glowing orbs and the show of power and he was worried that she was going to turn this into a vendetta. “I understand Angie and I feel the same way…”

“You do, do you? Tell me something Bobby, do you feel angry enough to want to do something that you know would put you over the edge into a place where there is possibly no return? Sam is dead and I feel it right in here,” Angela took the fist that she had punched and pressed it against her chest. “I feel that the only way to take it away is to rip Jake’s bloody head off and rip Yellow Eyes’ lungs out. I harbor the idea of draining Jake dry. Tell me Bobby, can you understand that?”

“You’re right, I can’t understand the methods you want to use and I can’t understand why you want to punish yourself by ignoring your injuries but I can understand anger. You know about Karen and you know a little about me.” Bobby paused. Angela hadn’t removed her fist from her chest. In fact she was pressing it hard against her chest and she was wincing. He knew why it was hurting as much or possibly worse than the state of her arm and he could see that she didn’t know. Tentatively he reached out and touched her shoulder. “You are close to the boys. It is only natural that you want to make the bastards that did this pay but I don’t think Sam or Dean would want you to do something that you would regret like drinking a human dry.”

Angela didn’t flinch when Bobby touched her. It actually calmed her. As Bobby spoke she started to make a slow smile. The old hunter was right in that neither of the boys wanted her to do something that she would regret and she had enough to last several lifetimes. Yet she couldn’t erase the feelings of failure and that throb from within that was not a result of her injuries. “You’re right Bobby. Sam and Dean wouldn’t want me to give in to the beast. They both know that I hate the very idea of drinking the stuff.” Angela then looked forward at the opposite grave wall and a thought occurred to her. “Dean. Oh Bobby, what about Dean?”

Bobby figured that she would make a turnover at some point once she diverted her attention away from her current train of thought. He knew that she wasn’t completely off that train but it was a start since she cared equally for both boys. He replied, “Dean is going to need you. Believe it or not I don’t think he blames you for any of this. If anything…”

“He blames himself. He’s the big brother and big brothers are supposed to look after the pain in the ass little brothers,” Angela finished. She could feel the anger rise again. “That was taken from him Bobby. It may not be my hand but eventually there will be hell to pay. That is the way of things… until someone brings absolution.”

Suddenly Angela did and about face and hoisted herself out of the grave. She gave Bobby a hand up making sure to use her good arm and hauled him up like it was nothing. She went over and picked up Ava and gently lowered her in. She did the same with Andy. Once the bodies were in, she kneeled at the edge resting her arms on her knees. She stared at the bodies with a nondescript expression.

Bobby was surprised at the action Angela took. It was like she shut off herself from everyone. He knew she was hurting but it was like she just shut the door and put up the ‘do not enter’ sign. It was worse than Dean when he was in the mood. She just became all business and nothing more. He wondered if that was how she had dealt with past hurts.

As Bobby watched Angela kneel by the graves and stared at the bodies, he said the first thing that came to mind as an attempt to draw her out, “Aren’t you going to salt and burn the remains? You know prevent anything from using them?”

Angela was still kneeling when she replied, “No.” She stood up slowly and added, “I don’t want to do that. Too much destruction has happened already. Besides there are ways to ensure that nothing will disturb the dead.” She knew that there were several things that she always kept in her pockets. Unfortunately what she wanted was on the side of her bad arm. The muscles were getting stiff from the overuse and she moved stiffly trying to reach with her good arm.

“What are ya looking for?”

Angela recognized that Bobby was offering help. She took it. “Left jean pocket. Small thin book.”

For once Bobby was glad that Dean was not around to make his stupid jokes about feeling Angela up. He followed her instruction and found the book. It was battered and old leather bound and it looked very old. He handed it to Angela asking, “What is it?”

“A very old book containing some old rites and rituals, including a sort of protection of the dead.” Angela looked at Bobby and added, “I don’t like burning bodies. It was a necessity back in my day and I never quite got over the stench of burning human flesh. An old friend gave this to me as a means of doing my duty without burning bodies.” She then flipped open the book and found the words she needed. She knew the words by heart since she had used them but she wanted Bobby to see them.

“Are you…”

“It’s up to Dean,” Angela answered the question without it being answered. She held the book open in her good hand and began to recite. It was an old version of the language of the Romanian gypsies. It sounded like poetry as she said the protection of the dead. When she was finished she gave a slight whistle.

Bobby was surprised to find that Angela had been telling the truth about the hell hound. He watched as she asked the thing to fill the grave and he understood why. He noticed that her injured arm was becoming stiffer. It needed to be looked at and rested. When she was finished she said, “Cerebus will finish and he will patrol.”

“I see you weren’t babbling like I thought at first,” Bobby replied.

“I know. I still don’t get it myself. I felt sorry for it and healed it and now it follows me like a little lost puppy.” Angela gave a slight tired smile as she followed Bobby to where the others had taken Sam. She stopped only for a moment because she caught the scent.

It was Jake’s scent. She recognized it and she could smell the demon’s blood as well. Her eyes glowed when she recognized the scent but she turned back towards the direction of the building. She let Bobby guide her in to the building.

JoAnne and David were not there but Dean was and she could see Sam. The throb in her chest became acute at the sight but she turned her attention to Dean. She could see the pain written all over his face and it made the throb hurt more. She didn’t have to say anything. Dean actually spoke to her. “What the hell did they do to you Angie?”

Angela was stunned by the question and couldn’t respond except with a puzzled frown. In fact she let Dean pull her and push her into a chair. The next thing she knew her jacket was off and Dean was inspecting her arm and patching it up. The slight pride she felt as he put what he knew to work lessened the throb slightly and gave her courage to keep going and figure out their next move. For now though she would just be there for Dean like she always was.


	12. Chapter 12

Dean was still in a state of shock when JoAnne and David helped him bring Sam in and laid him on the bed. For a moment it looked like his brother was just sleeping. He half expected his brother to stop playing Sleeping Beauty and get up and this would be nothing more than a bad dream. He was even tempted to tease Angela into kissing his baby brother to wake him up and take a picture of the moment. Anything to take away the fact that his baby brother was lying on that bed and he wasn’t going to wake up.

Over and over in his mind Dean thought about what he could have done differently. He contemplated the what ifs like what if he did have Angela with him. Would he have found Sam a split second faster? Would they have stopped it from happening? What if he hadn’t sent Sam into that diner? Maybe he would have never been taken. That was minuscule compared to the fact that he couldn’t stopped getting the sense that he had let his brother down.

Dean had always told Sam that he would look after him; that he would be there to protect him no matter what. That was the promise he made to himself when Dad first gave Sam to him as a baby the night Mom died. He kept that promise even when Sam ditched him and Dad to go to Stanford. He was miffed but he was also proud of his smart baby brother. He came every month to check up on Sam because that was what big brothers did.

Dean looked at the body of his brother and it felt like there was a big hole in his chest where his heart was supposed to be. Sam was all he had left and now he was gone. He had failed in the one job that had been his driving force since he was four and probably since the day Sam had been born. Dad did tell him that once he learned how to hold Sam, he wouldn’t let anyone mess with his brother.

“Aw Sammy I’m sorry I failed you,” Dean murmured.

“Dean?”

Dean turned to see JoAnne and David standing there. She was looking at him with an expression that he really didn’t want to see. It made Sam’s death all the more real with that look of pity or whatever it was. He couldn’t be angry at her for that though and the guy Barcalow was good too. She was only trying to help and she did help him carry Sam in. Both of them did and they understood and did minimal touching. He turned back to look at Sam. As he did so he replied, “I’m okay.” He really didn’t mean it but he didn’t want to oblige them anymore.

JoAnne knew just by looking at Dean that he was not okay. Yet she was not going to push. “If you don’t need anything else, David and I are going to take off. We need to get back before we’re declared AWOL or something…” She glanced at David and he gave a slight nod. She turned back and looked at Dean, “If you need something, anything, you can call us.”

When Dean didn’t respond, JoAnne gave a slight nod and started for the door followed by David. They were at the door when Dean said, “Thanks. Be careful out there.”

JoAnne gave a slight smile and walked out. David paused and said, “Take care.”

The seemingly normalcy was almost too much but Dean was appreciative of it from the two cadets. It eased things a little but not much. As soon as they had gone, Dean went back to mulling over what he could have done better. He didn’t need anyone to say it. He didn’t know if he could face Bobby and Angela in light of his failure to protect Sam. He was glad his dad wasn’t around. It would be too much.

A noise caught his attention and he turned to see Bobby leading in a very banged up and dirty Angela. She had a peculiar look on her face and he could see that she was seriously hurt. She was holding her left arm rather funny. She also had some slight bruising on her face and a few scrapes that were barely healing and her hands looked like crap. It was the blood that had him nearly panic especially with the large concentration on the left arm of her jacket.

Dean was aware of feelings of concern about her injuries as well as being pissed that someone hurt her. If Sam were up and about, there would be the bitch face to deal with and hell they would probably both be fighting over who did what for her. He said the first thing that came to mind, “What the hell did they do to you Angie?”

He didn’t expect her to reply and he certainly didn’t expect the puzzled frown from her. It occurred to him that she had been expecting the worst from him. Did she think this to be her fault? That wasn’t true in his mind. He thought she did everything she could and that was while she was thrust into a plan that only the other side knew all the rules.  He knew she did everything and then some when it came to him and Sam. He didn’t blame her. He saw what he needed to do. He may have failed with Sam but he could see something that he knew he could fix.

Gently, Dean tugged on Angela’s arm and pulled her towards a chair. He pushed her to urge her to sit and he was surprised that she complied. He tugged off her jacket and was alarmed at the redness of the makeshift bandage on her arm but did his best not to show it. He undid the bandage to reveal what he surmised was a bite wound. Even through the crusted blood Dean could tell it was deep and even with Angela’s rapid healing ability, it would take quite some time for it to heal completely.

Grabbing the medical bag, he unfurled it and looked for the stuff that would be useful for cuts like that. He grabbed the water that JoAnne had thoughtfully brought in… or was it David? It didn’t matter as he cleaned the wound as gently as he could. He frowned as he watched her arm twitch and the muscles move as well. The hard part was putting on the salve.

Dean looked at the vial with it and looked at Angela. She had been watching him the entire time and now was looking at the open wound. When she looked up he motioned with the vial and she gave a slight nod. Dean took it to mean that he was to use it but even he knew that it would sting like holy hell. Still she was waiting and looking at him expectantly.

Dean put the salve on a clean cloth and took a slight breath before putting it on the wound. Not a sound came out but he did notice her hand become clenched in a tight fist. It loosened shortly as the sting passed and Dean lifted the cloth to look. The wound was clearly a bite. He had to ask, “Something bite you?”

Angela stared at his work and choked out, “Hell hound. He’s outside patrolling.”

Even to Dean’s ears that sounded strange. Hell hounds usually used people as chew toys and dog chow. He looked up at Angela as he finished applying the salve. Since everything was pretty much shot to hell and this was Angela, he asked, “Yours?”

“Still don’t get it but essentially yes.”

“Oh.” There was nothing else to say.

Dean finished bandaging the wound, not bothering with stitches since when he applied the salve her healing ability kicked in and was knitting the torn flesh together. He made sure it was tight since he was sure she was planning something that would require both hands. The slight smile was more than he deserved from her.

It surprised him when she put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a slight shove to go to Sam. It was an ironclad rule that you cleaned up after patching up. As it turned out, she started doing that after swallowing a couple of her pain pills with a bottle of whiskey that had been brought in. She chugged quite a bit but left plenty. She said nothing as she cleaned up leaving him to look at his brother lying there on the bed. Dean had the suspicion that she was either in serious denial or she was saying in her own way that she had little to no right to be there. Which of course was a load of bull crap in his mind.

****

Bobby wondered how things were going between Dean and Angela and debated on the wisdom of leaving them alone together. Even more so with the fact that there was a hell hound on the loose acting like a guard dog. Still he had to be the one to be the practical one and make sure they were functioning still. After seeing Angela to the place where Sam had been taken, he drove the girl JoAnne and David to the nearest town to hitch a ride back to school and to pick up food. He knew that at least Angela needed to eat.

He picked up a bucket of chicken and headed back. The sun started to shine again but that was little comfort since Sam was dead. Bobby didn’t think that he would ever be able to get the image of either Dean or Angela in their grief out of his mind. He didn’t even like how Angela looked after she vented at him while burying the two kids that ended up in the same boat as Sam. He surmised that she felt she was in hell and what the demon put her through was nothing.

It was JoAnne that filled Bobby in about what happened out there in the forest. She explained how the demon abducted her and her friend and offered them the choice of either attacking her or protecting Sam. She told him that they chose to help her and explained that they quizzed the demon into telling them what the catch was on either choice.

Bobby heard the catch in the girl’s voice. She was feeling guilty about their choice and a glance at the more calm and reserved boy told him likewise. Bobby sighed and thought that there was plenty of blame and guilt to go around. These two were brought in because their only connection was that the boys and Angela helped them out on a case and they made the best decision possible with the information they were given at the time even though a demon was giving it to them. He said, “It’s not your fault.”

“Mr. Singer, we thought that we could help Angie by clearing the way to get her there faster,” JoAnne said, “We thought that Sam was okay where he was.”

“You had no idea that a demon was within your group,” Bobby countered.

“Angie did,” David replied. “She knew and kept him close. I think she was waiting for a chance to take him out or gain an advantage.”

Bobby found that to be strange of Angela but then again she was stuck out there with the task of getting to Sam with nothing but what was in her pockets and she had to survive with whatever the demon threw at her. Keeping his lackey around was strange but the more he thought about it, she was smart to try and gain an advantage. He replied, “Angie always was the tactician. Maybe it was for leverage.”

“But it didn’t work out that way,” JoAnne replied. “Dave and I were the leverage used against her since there were two others. We prevented her from getting to Sam.”

“Hey, if you weren’t there, she would have been three against one and they probably would have done worse than what she already was.” Bobby paused a moment before adding, “There’s plenty of guilt and blame to go around and I think Dean and Angie are the ones that are punishing themselves the most.”

“Dean I understand but Angie…” JoAnne hesitated. She wasn’t sure if she was qualified to make such assumptions especially to people who knew Angela more than she did. She couldn’t help it though, “Are she and Sam…?”

Bobby got what the girl was getting at. He even suspected something but he felt it wasn’t his right to say anything and when Dean teased her or Sam about getting together, Angela turned the tables on him. It could have been a cover or maybe she really didn’t see Sam in that light but in the light of a close friend.  He replied, “No. Just friends.”

“Okay.”

David had been silent while listening to the conversation. He had been thinking about the whole point. The obvious was to torture Angela about failing in what she was to do but the manner and the types of things sent after her… that was different. The more he thought about it especially when he caught a glimpse of Angela fighting that demon Alighieri, the more he came to his conclusions. “The demon wanted her to use her powers.”

Bobby had to keep his eyes on the road but that revelation was troublesome. He replied, “What?”

David explained, “When she faced the Acheri, she used her physical strength except when she told it to stay back. There was power in her voice. The only time she actually used any abilities in front of us was when she revealed the demon.”

Bobby listened to the explanation. It sort of made sense and it even made sense that the demon was trying to turn Angela into something that she was by nature not. He nearly succeeded when she admitted that she wanted blood, literally. Then that calculating manner she adopted afterwards… it had him worried.

It was something he thought about after dropping the kids off and they reassured him that they would call if they got into trouble but it wouldn’t be a problem. He picked up some food and thought about how best to broach the subject of the demon’s plans for Angela. It would have to wait until the issue about Sam was addressed.

Bobby made it back without much trouble. He happened to pass by the hell mutt who made a low whine. Feeling ridiculous, Bobby selected a piece of chicken and tossed it at the thing. It was a strange sight to see the leg he tossed being devoured and Bobby wondered if something was truly up with Angela to change a hell beast into a near mild kitten, a troubling comparison Bobby ever came up with.

Bobby entered the building, “Dean, you all right?”

“I’m fine Bobby.”

Bobby could make out the firm posture of Dean leaning against the door looking at Sam’s body. Angela was leaning against the wall to Dean’s left and she was also looking at Sam’s body. Her bandaged arm was held across her middle as if to support it and she looked a little pale. Her bloodied jacket was on a chair and Bobby inwardly cringed at the sight of it.

The two of them didn’t move so Bobby tried again. “I got ya something to eat. I know that you might be hungry Angie. You should eat something.”

“I said I’m fine,” Dean replied as he turned away from Sam and walked over to the table where the bottle of whiskey was. He popped the cork and downed a sizeable gulp. The burn was no substitute for his pain but it helped.

“I’m not hungry for food Bobby,” Angela’s voice came sounding a little flat.

Bobby looked in the direction were Angela was and then back at Dean. She did say that it was up to the boy. Bobby took it to mean that he was the one driving the bus now. It was probably a bad time to bring it up but they had to move forward now. As much as he hated to say it but Sam was dead and it was time to lay him to rest. He began, “Dean, I hate to bring this up. I really do. But don’t you think maybe it’s time we bury Sam?”

No one saw Angela whip her head around the corner to look at the two of them. They did hear the clatter of something falling and papers rattling in the room she was in. Bobby managed a side glance at her. She was staring at them with an empty and hollow look and the loose tendrils of her hair were blowing as if a breeze were coming in but Bobby knew that wasn’t the case this time.

At the same time, Dean turned to look at him with a similar expression however there was a slight hint of something else that suggested that Bobby was betraying him by even suggesting it. Anyone observing would have thought that the younger hunter was going to hit the elder one given the firmness of the expression. The only word that came out of Dean’s mouth was, “No.” Then he sat down.

The rustling died down slightly and for the first time since taking root in that spot, Angela came out and stood near Dean. It had Bobby wonder what exactly happened. He took a moment to assess her position and her demeanor.

Angela had a dead look about her. Her eyes were lifeless; the sparkle that had been there whenever she was around the boys was gone. It had been replaced by something that would have chilled a lesser man than Bobby Singer. Cleaned up from the dirt and the blood, her face had thinned somewhat and the bruises that were beginning to fade away added to the cold demeanor that was emanating from her. The way how she stood by Dean though, Bobby recognized it full well. It was how she stood up to defend the boys. She had adopted a protective stance as if to let Dean know that she was watching out for everything and that she was there for him but he was driving this bus and she was content to follow.

It gave Bobby the impression that they had become a team in their grief. It could be considered a good thing but it could also be a bad thing considering that the two of them were similar in many ways as well as opposites. It was a little intimidating that Angela was looking like those guys that acted as bouncers for bars but Bobby decided to follow through on what he was suggesting. He looked down at Dean sitting in the chair and offered, “Well, we could maybe…”

“What, torch his corpse?” Dean looked up at Bobby. He knew that Angela was behind him both literally and figuratively in this. While Bobby was away and after he patched her up, they didn’t talk much but came to a silent agreement on a few things and he even got used to the idea of the hell mutt outside being on their side. He was driving the bus now and he didn’t want to do what Bobby was suggesting. “Not yet.”

Bobby thought this was going too far. This insistence of not burying Sam… it was going to destroy both Dean and Angela. Well looking at Angela, it seemed that she was already gone. She was following Dean’s lead but he knew that girl. She was planning through on a path of vengeance and that Bobby was sure of. She was good at being convincing and she would convince Dean somewhere along the line to go through with it. She might even make it a kamikaze mission for her to ensure that Dean was free of the yellow eyed demon. He had to put them back on the road.  “I want you both to come with me.”

Dean raised a brow as a warning and determination. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Where he goes, I go,” Angela replied. “I made a vow.”

“Dean, Angie… please.”

“Would you cut me some slack?” Dean had leaned on his elbows and looked up at the grizzled hunter. He felt the gentle touch of Angela’s hand on his shoulder and was reassured that she was going to be there no matter what. That was what she did and he knew this was her way of making up to him about Sam. She didn’t need to in his mind but it became clear that to her she did and he let her.

“I just don’t think you two should be alone, that’s all.” Bobby was a proud man and he managed to pass that on to the Winchester boys and Angela was probably the epitome of pride in some areas. It took a lot to try and put into words the way he felt about the situation. It was easier to stick to the business end of things and there were still a few things to take care of. There was still the demon out there as well as that Talley kid and having both of them help… It was just better. “I gotta admit I could use your help.”

It didn’t help that Dean scoffed. Angela’s reaction had been more subdued but Bobby could see that she was scoffing herself. He could just hear the comment about being a half human bloodhound which was a joke started by Sam. Bobby continued, “Something big is going down. End of the world big.”

It was enough for Dean. Sam was gone. None of that other crap mattered. “Well, then let it end!”

Bobby was flabbergasted at Dean’s reaction and even more so by Angela’s non reaction. It was like she didn’t care but Bobby was sure that she did care. She was just in grief and it made him think that those feelings extended deep for her. Dean’s reaction he could expect since the boy could only hold so much in until it exploded out. Dean cared about others and saving them on this job. “You don’t mean that.”

Dean was still pissed and he stood up ready to duke it out. He stood up so fast and hard that the chair he had been sitting in fell over. He circled around the table looking at Bobby as if he had betrayed him. He managed to see Angela looking at the scene almost like a demon would when they were amused and curious but Dean knew better. He looked at the grizzled hunter, “You don’t think so? Huh? You don’t think I’ve given enough? You don’t think I’ve paid enough? Hell I know Angie’s given more than enough and paid for it tenfold. I’m done with it. All of it.”

“I’m done too,” Angela said in a low voice.

Bobby couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Dean never walked away from a job when lives were at stake. Angela didn’t do that either. He appealed to her hoping that maybe she might be able to knock some sense into Dean since it seemed that Dean was on good terms or at least willing to listen to her. “You can’t mean that Angie.”

“I’m tired Bobby,” Angela replied her voice sounding tired. She shrugged her shoulders in a careless sort of way as she walked in a slow manner. A casual observer would have thought that she was drunk and it would have been bolstered by the fact that at that moment she took a swig of whiskey from Dean’s discarded bottle. “I’m tired of chasing shadows and spilling my blood. When I reach for a good thing, it ends up being taken from me. I give and people take. That’s always the case and I’m tired of it. I’m done with it.”

“Angie, this isn’t you talking. You’re grieving I get it…”

“That’s the thing Bobby. You don’t,” Angela replied in deliberate tones that were intended as a warning. “You don’t know because you haven’t lived for five hundred years and have seen more death than can be counted. Oh and living with the fact that you may have caused said deaths, nothing compares to the things you’ve told me.”

Dean motioned with his hand towards Angela. “It’s alright Angie. I think Bobby gets it now we mean what we say.” He looked Bobby in the eye and said, “If you knew what’s good for you, turn around and get the hell out of here.” In a burst of anger, Dean shoved Bobby and shouted, “Go!”

It broke Bobby’s heart to see the two of them like this. He saw Angela looking at the ground and her face undergoing a series of emotions. He guessed her mind was on overdrive and the emotions were a product of a series of illogical thoughts working themselves together in a logical fashion and her lower lip was quivering as well. Dean was taken aback by what he did. Bobby knew that it was the grief talking but still the words hurt.

“I’m sorry,” Dean finally said. He repeated, “I’m sorry,” and quickly turned away. He felt ashamed at what he did but he was hurting. “Please just go.”

There was nothing more to say. Bobby cast one look at Angela who finally looked at him and saw a single tear fall down her cheek. She wiped it away before Dean could see it and turned away to go back to where Sam was. Bobby knew she was sorry and she didn’t mean everything she said but he knew it was best not to stay. They had to work this out. He turned to leave but not before saying, “Well you both know where I’ll be.”

Dean knew that he had been unfair with Bobby and that saying sorry wasn’t going to cut it. He looked over to where Sam was lying on the bed and saw Angela had slumped to the floor. He watched as she wiped a tear away and looked away and his own started to fall.


	13. Chapter 13

Ellen sat across the table and stared at the young man sitting across from her still trying to process the fact that he was a vampire and he had just saved her life… well made it possible so that she didn’t die in the fire at the Roadhouse. She couldn’t believe that Ash was gone and her business was gone. She didn’t even know if Dean, Bobby, Sam and Angela were all right. Still the calm demeanor of the vampire in front of her did enough to calm her to the point of processing what had happened.

Since her piece of crap vehicle died, she took to walking back to the Roadhouse only to find it burnt to the ground. The only person there was the young man in front of her and he was pulling a dead body out of the wreckage towards a hole that had been dug. She hadn’t been sure if who he was and pulled out her gun from her bag and pointed it at him. “Alright now you hold there. What the hell are you doing?”

He didn’t reply right away but stopped what he was doing and turned to face her. He held up his hands and replied, “I didn’t do anything. I’m just trying to lay the dead to rest.”

Ellen wasn’t convinced. She recognized him from earlier and to see him here alive raised red flags in her mind. She didn’t lower the gun. “Right and I’m just supposed to believe that. Nice try.”

“I’m telling the truth. I came to help, Ellen.”

“How do you know my name? I never saw you before until you came into my bar.” Ellen pointed the gun right at the chest with the intention to fire. “You better start explaining otherwise you’re going to get a serious case of lead poisoning.”

Austin had decided to do the only thing he could do while waiting for Ellen to return. He began to dig a grave for the dead. They deserved that much and he didn’t want anything supernatural to do anything to the hunters that died there. He knew they would have wanted it that way. He lined the grave with the salt he had stashed on his bike and dragged each body to the pit. He was in the middle of pulling Ash out when she returned and started questioning him. Now he had a gun pointed at him and he wasn’t in the mood to get shot so he tried to figure out the best way to convince her that he was there to help her. He replied, “Alright, I know you just like I know Angela.”

“Wouldn’t surprise me considering but that still doesn’t tell me who the hell you are.” Ellen wasn’t surprised that there were people who knew Angela. That girl probably had a friend/enemy list that was longer than most two lane highways and one had to be careful when meeting those people. This guy could be a friend or an enemy. She wrapped her finger around the trigger and was prepared to fire.

Austin sighed. This was going to be difficult. “I know this is going to be difficult to explain but I am telling the truth. I was sent here to protect you and Ash.”

“Yeah well I can see that Ash is dead and what are you doing? Waiting to finish the job?”

Austin took a step forward, “Look…”

“Not another step.” Ellen backed up as the guy advanced.

“Ellen calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.” Austin took a second step forward trying a gamble of getting close to snatch the gun out of her hands. “I really was sent here to help. The Centurion sent me because they caught wind of a plot against you and Ash.” What he didn’t realize was that his eyes were doing the vampire thing and he inadvertently revealed his fangs.

Ellen saw the glow in the eyes and the teeth. The eyes she had seen before since Angela showed them one time when a hunter tried to get fresh with her Jo. She was going to say something but Angela got there first and told the hunter to back off. Of course the guy thought she was kidding and tried to get fresh with her. He was surprised when upon touching Angela he found his hand in a crushing grip and a pair of glowing eyes glaring at him.

That led to the hunter trying to shoot Angela. Ellen had to interfere and Ash did as well but ultimately Angela stood up to him and took his gun and stripped it with one hand. The situation she was in was different and she was standing in front of an unknown that was probably either a friend or foe. And to top it off she was sure that he was a vampire. As he took a step forward, she fired.

Austin felt the sting of the bullet as it hit his chest. That let him expose his fangs completely and his eyes glowed. He looked at where he was hit and the blood flowing. Damn and that was his favorite shirt. He looked at Ellen with an annoyed look, “That was my favorite shirt.”

Ellen frowned but didn’t lower the gun. “And it will be your least favorite if you don’t give me something other than the bullshit you’ve been giving me.”

“Fine,” Austin replied. He knew there was one thing that would put him on the okay with Ellen Harvelle. He gave the low down, “My name is Austin and as you can tell I am a vampire but not the kind that hunters typically hunt. The reason I know you is because of Angie.”

“Right you and every other hunter that passes through here that wants something from her. Give me something more.” Ellen wasn’t going to let up until he said something that only a true friend of Angela would know about her.

Austin realized that he was going to have use something else to convince Ellen. The thing was he respected Angela’s privacy but he realized that she would have used it if it meant keeping Ellen safe. He replied, “You’re right Ellen but I know things that others don’t know.”

“Then you better start talking or the next bullet will be in your head.”

“I know that Angie comes to you when she needs advice. You see her as another daughter that you have to protect and she has come to think of you like a mother. She also has an obscene love of classic literature in particular Shakespeare and Romantic era.”

Ellen knew that too. Something told her that this vampire could be trusted but she was not naïve to give it completely. She lowered her gun slightly. “Alright I’ll bite on that.”

“I also know that you have been trying to contact her and you have been having trouble. The same thing has occurred for me and it has to do with the psychics. The ones she has under protection are fine but the others…”

Ellen was convinced but she was still wary. “Alright, I’m not entirely convinced.” She put her gun down and in her bag. “Still you have made points few would know. Now could you explain what the hell is going on?”

“I will explain once I finish here.”

He did explain once he finished burying the bodies and calling in a few favors from friends to clean up. Ellen just stood and looked at the remains realizing how close she had come to getting killed. The boy whom she found out was Austin was forthcoming in explaining how he had been ordered to protect her and Ash. To make up for the fact that she shot him, she volunteered to patch him up and deftly removed the bullet.

Ellen wondered why she was considered so special to warrant such attention. Austin answered it for her, “Technically the orders were to counter possible demon activity around the Roadhouse but I knew how much you and Ash mean to Angie. She has few friends in the world.”

“I know,” Ellen replied as she took a sip of coffee. “She has a way of drawing people to her but her true self… I’ve only seen it and how she interacts with the boys and Bobby and my Jo…”

Austin gave a slight nod. “My regret is that I failed in protecting Ash. I didn’t count on the hell bitch being there.”

“I’m going to guess it is someone that you and Angie know well,” Ellen ventured.

“Yes,” Austin replied resisting the urge to grind his teeth. It was a bad habit anyway and when he did it, he clicked his fangs at the same time. “I should have figured on her using you and Ash to get to Angie. The bitch loves using pressure points and has done it for most of Angie’s life.”

“Then why not take her out?”

It was a good question. Austin could have taken Lenya on as well as the others who have encountered her but they didn’t. Austin had a theory on that. Lenya loved to torment people but her personal favorite was Angela and those that she had tangled with were connected to Angela. It was as if Lenya were trying to draw Angela into a final fray but was confident that it wouldn’t happen since Angela had a kind heart and she would put others first before vengeance. He offered, “Out of respect… respect for Angie.”

Ellen thought the answer was weak but she would accept it for now. She could surmise that it was something that Angela would eventually have to deal with. She hoped that day would come soon because Angela had enough pain and suffering and ever since hooking up with the Winchester boys, she seemed happy. “I don’t understand it but I will accept it for now. So now that you’re here, what is our next move?”

Austin looked out the window of the diner they had made it to. Night had fallen and he needed to make sure that Lenya wouldn’t try anything again. He said, “Well there isn’t much to do now. The clean-up crew will be working. Is there someplace you can go?”

“Not really,” Ellen replied taking another sip of her coffee. “I suppose I can head over to Bobby’s and let him know that I’m okay.”

That was a sound plan to Austin. He could take her there. He just didn’t know how she would take to riding on his bike for the trip. She hadn’t complained on the trip into town but cross country to Sioux Falls was a different matter. He asked, “How do you feel about a road trip?”

“You intend to go too? Don’t you have a charge to get back to?”

“Temporary. A permanent assignment had been found for her,” Austin replied. It wasn’t exactly true but with the old woman and the old man both looking after things, they were fine and the new guardian would be arriving within a day. They would be fine. “My orders still stand until I am satisfied about your safety.”

Ellen didn’t quite relish the idea of riding with a vampire who looked young enough to be her son. It felt weird. She asked, “What are we to do about transportation? My car is shot which I am not entirely convinced that you had nothing to do with.”

Austin gave a sheepish grin. He explained his plan about the roadblock and admitted that he didn’t count on the fact that her car was a piece of crap and would die on her. He knew she wasn’t going to go for the bike. Well he didn’t want to sell it either. There was only one option. He said, “Then I’ll get us a truck. Stay here and I’ll be back.”

To Ellen he was as good as his word. He came back after nearly an hour and within a nice old beat up truck. It looked like it would fall apart but it was a tough old thing and could take a few hard knocks. It was one of those old steel beauties made for heavy lifting. She gave a tolerant grin as he made a show of it through the window and proceeded to load his bike into the back. She went out to join him. “So this thing will get us to Bobby’s?”

Austin replied as he finished fastening the last of the lines, “She will. May not look like it but she’s got it where it counts.”

“Seems like you have my taste in choosing things that look like crap.”

“Except this one won’t break down in the middle of the highway,” Austin countered with a wry grin. He came around after doing one last check and opened the passenger door. “After you, Ellen.”

Ellen raised a brow, “I see you aren’t a cheeky young bastard. You’ve got some manners.” She got in the truck with little fuss and fastened her seatbelt. She figured she might as well be on some friendly footing with the vampire since they were going to be traveling with each other.

“I’m much older than you think Ellen. Chivalry isn’t dead you know,” Austin replied as he closed her door and went to the driver side. He wasn’t in the mood to argue and he could see at night. He would drive. “There are quite a few of us that remember.”

“Yeah and Angie is one of them. Do you know where she is?”

Austin started the engine and started to back out of the spot. “No I don’t.” He didn’t look at Ellen as he turned towards the highway. It was going to be a long ride.

****

Isis rarely ventured into heaven since her dominion was over mortals and the mortal realm but she was given permission and from the highest authority. She was a part of that authority’s creation. Besides she needed to be there to make sure of what was going on.

She had felt the scream of anguish like it was piercing her heart. One of her children was suffering. She went along her usual methods as quick as she could and the sight had her in tears. She knew the cause of that anguish.

Her favorite daughter was suffering and it was because the youngest Winchester was dead. A quick assessment told the goddess that her daughter had tried to save him with her power but she couldn’t. The goddess knew why to a degree and her heart went out to her daughter. She was also angry at the demon Azazel for forcing out such power like that.

Like other beings like her, Isis knew that what was done was done. The least she could do was to make sure that his soul was faring well. She ventured to heaven and began her journey of seeking out the young Winchester’s soul.

She found him fairly quickly since she knew what to look for. If he had been in the realm between realms, she may have been able to help. Now though, she really couldn’t. There were others responsible for life and death and even they had to appeal to the highest authority. That was an option but Isis was not usually one to interfere with the natural order of things. She studied the young one’s soul and watched.

He appeared to be happy. He was going through his best memories. What surprised Isis was that he kept coming back to the last happy memory. He was running from her favorite daughter and teasing her with a photo. There were others such as pranks and conversations between him and her daughter. She was glad that he had considered those good memories. If only her daughter could see this and finally see that she meant much to those that wanted to know her.

On another move into another memory where he was facing off schoolyard bullies he noticed that someone was watching and turned to look at her. He frowned in puzzlement at her and asked, “Who are you?”

Isis wondered why he was able to see her. She had taken precautions since she didn’t want to interfere with the soul’s well-being. She replied, “I am the goddess, Isis.”

The boy frowned still. “The Egyptian goddess of the dead?”

“Yes. I am not here to hurt you.”

The boy seemed to accept that. He began asking questions, particularly if he knew her favorite daughter. Isis could have denied anything but the fact that he could see her was a testament to something that she hadn’t considered. Better he know the truth but she would not say too much. She began answering each question, being careful to not divulge too much information. She then had to pay a visit to another soul.

****

Bobby made it back to his house but his heart felt heavy. It felt right to delve into his stash of whiskey but he couldn’t do that. There were more pressing matters to deal with. One was the demon and the big end of the world big thing that had to be taken care of. He really could use Dean and Angela’s help on this but he realized that they both weren’t in any state to do anything.

Dean may have meant what he said about being done with everything but Bobby was sure that Angela wasn’t. She was not one to leave innocent lives hanging out to dry. She would rather kill herself than let that happen. He had seen it when they did a couple of hunts together before she got back on the bus with the boys. That was why he knew she didn’t mean what she said. Hell she even cried in front of him and she never cried.

That also told him that she was in serious pain. The sort of temper tantrum at the grave site she dug was just the beginning of it. The emptiness that followed was either denial or a means of closing off any sort of emotion. Perhaps she was tired of being hurt and she was thinking that the best way for that was to shut herself off from other people. Yet she didn’t quite do that with Dean so it meant that there was still some hope for her. It was something to think about which Bobby did as he pulled out his maps to try and figure this bitch of a phenomenon out.

“You know you are partially right.”

Bobby pulled out his gun that he kept on his person and pointed it in the direction of the voice that he heard. He saw a woman with olive tanned skin and black hair. Her eyes were green like emeralds and were lined with black and a slight feather at the corners. She wore a simple pendant and a white dress. He kept his gun pointed at her and replied, “What am I right about and who the hell are you?”

Isis studied the human. She could understand why her daughter chose to bond with this one. She replied, “You are right in that she wouldn’t leave innocents to the mercy of the demons.”

“Well that’s a relief but you didn’t answer my other question,” Bobby replied with a slight hint of sarcasm. “Now who or what are you?”

Isis didn’t move as she replied, “I am not a demon Bobby Singer. I am the goddess Isis, patron guardian of the dead.”

“I know that but that is nothing more than a legend.”

“So certain you are. Surely the Winchester boys mentioned ‘the goddess’ from their first adventure with my favorite daughter?” Isis cocked her head slightly as she studied the elder hunter. She could tell that he had a good soul and that he would do anything to protect the Winchesters and her daughter.

“Favorite daughter?”

“You would know her as Angela.”

Bobby knew that. He was being difficult on purpose. He had read Egyptian mythology and one part of the lore spoke of the goddess Isis being the patroness of the dead but not just the dead, the living dead. That meant more or less the vampires and to some extent the Chasers like Angela. From what he gathered, the goddess was saying that Angela was her favorite of all that worshiped her. That was a little confusing to the grizzled hunter.

Never before had Angela shown religious inclinations. In fact she simply acknowledged them and left it at that. To hear that she was a devotee of this goddess was like the equivalent of her saying that she was actually a guy dressed in drag or something equally outrageous like the hell mutt that now followed her. He still didn’t lower his gun as he replied, “That is how I know her. How do you know about her?”

“She serves me. She serves as a protector of man.”

“No duh on the protection but she’s never shown religious inclination before.”

“Not all servants are devotees,” Isis offered, “She serves from the goodness of her heart and soul.”

“That is kind of the obvious.”

“Which is the reason why I am here,” Isis replied getting straight down to business. She could do this with a gun pointed at her. The sooner he understood this, the better. “I know what happened in Cold Oak. Her anguish was that great and I am certain that others felt it and they are afraid.”

“What are you talking about? I know she’s hurting. I saw it myself. Her powers went haywire.” Bobby shrugged his shoulders as if it were nothing new. “How that could be something to be afraid of is beyond me. Demons usually like a show of power which is what I am betting Yellow Eyes wanted from her.”

Isis didn’t change her expression. She replied, “And I am sure you saw that she feels that she is already dead.” When the hunter hesitated, she continued, “You’ve seen it have you?”

“Seen what?”

“The look of the living dead. Alive but not alive. It’s all in the eyes.”

Bobby knew what the goddess meant now. He had seen that look. The cold dead look as if she were dead and had nothing left. Yet Bobby was sure that she wasn’t completely gone. She had oscillated between various emotions like she didn’t know what to think.

The goddess watched the hunter think about what she said. It was obvious that he had seen it but she could sense that something else was going on in that mind. She then said, “What you saw is a result of a part of her soul feeling like it was ripped out. That cry of anguish was the pain of it. What followed since then is a downward spiral.”

“Downward spiral into what?”

“Vengeance.”

Bobby finally lowered his gun. He got the feeling that the goddess was right about that. “She’s still her. She still cares.”

“I know which is why I have come. I want you understand something Bobby Singer,” Isis replied. She was relieved that he finally stopped pointing the gun at her. If he had shot her, she would have been annoyed and it would be another dress ruined by a suspicious hunter. “There are things older in this world that have been kept secret for centuries and there are things that have not been seen but could prove fatal if not prepared for.”

“So you’re saying that Angie is a part of those things? What kind of crap have you put that poor girl through?” Bobby demanded from the goddess like a concerned parent.

The goddess was pleased with his response. He could be trusted with this and maybe be able to help her daughter through the troubled times that were sure to come. It would be a heavy burden on this hunter but she was certain that he would take it for her daughter’s sake. She replied, “I shall tell you what you want to know but I need to know something Bobby Singer. Are you prepared to face whatever consequences that will happen?”

Bobby knew what his answer was. It was Angela. He hadn’t liked what he saw and if what he knew could help her then he would take it. He looked the goddess in the eye and replied, “If it’s for Angie and if it involves the boys, then yes.”

The goddess was surprised that he brought up the boys this late in the conversation. That was no matter. The answer was pleasing and she would tell him. She began, “Tell me, are you familiar with the power of souls?”


	14. Chapter 14

Angela sat on the ground looking at the lifeless body of Sam and then looked at her hands. The scrapes from her fight with Alighieri had long since healed but the one scar on her left hand was still there. It stood out but it also looked like a part of her hand. She ran a thumb along the white line feeling and remembering.

The scar came from the first case she worked on with the boys. Back then she just wanted to get in, get the job done and get out. She wanted to keep to the promises she made to Mary and John. She told Mary that she would stay away and keep those things away. She did until Mary begged her to come and save Sam and Mary had declared that vow null and void. John had her swear to look after the boys and she kept it, following along and occasionally giving a hand.

The scar came when she cut herself trying to undo the knots on Sam’s bindings. He took her hand and bound it with a piece torn from his shirt. It should have healed like the others but some scars never faded. She knew that. The scar on her hand served as a reminder that things couldn’t go back to the way they were. She grew attached to the boys and Sam was always persistent in trying to bring her out of her shell. When he needed her the most, she wasn’t and now he was dead.

Looking at the scar, Angela absently rubbed it with her right thumb. She felt nothing at the moment and yet she felt pain but it was the kind of pain that could never heal. She had hurt Bobby and she was sorry for it and hoped Bobby saw that before he left. It was just that she felt emptiness. It was like there was a vast hole in her being that couldn’t be patched up no matter what she tried. She looked curiously at her hand.

There was a saying about the dangers of opening up old wounds. Granted it was something out of a Star Trek film, it held a modicum of truth. You were in danger of making the wound worse than what it really was. Angela stared at it. Maybe it would bring pain and she could feel it. It would certainly overshadow the pain she had now as well as the anger.

Jake Talley.

Angela narrowed her eyes as she looked at Sam. It was because of Jake that Sam was dead. It was because of her involvement with Azazel that led to all of this. It was only right that she go after those responsible and then finish it once and for all. Then she would be free. The emptiness she felt started feeling cold. There was nothing left to lose and she would make it up to Dean. She would go after Talley since she now had the scent. She could easily send Cerebus after him but that wouldn’t be sporting. She wanted to do it for herself and bleed him dry. She would go after Azazel and bleed him dry and finally she would finish it with herself.

As she was thinking these thoughts, she dug her right nail into her palm and cut the skin. She ran her thumb along the line of the scar, drawing blood. She felt pain but it was nothing. There was nothing. There was only emptiness.

“Angie, what the hell are you doing?”

Angela looked up to see Dean coming towards her with a cloth. She looked at her hand and saw the blood coming forth. She peered at it curiously and tentatively gave a slight lick. She had always wondered what it was about her blood that had bloodsuckers want to drink it. Better now than never and the tip of her tongue took a small amount of the blood on her hand and she tasted it.

The sanguine taste was like human blood. She had tried it only once… well she thought he was human and he told her to drink. He begged her so she wouldn’t die. That blood was different but she could taste the humanness of it. Hers was the same. It was red and tasted like humans but she could tell that it was different and assumed that it was her vampire half.

As she was tasting it, her hand was grabbed by Dean who pressed a cloth to it to try and stop the bleeding. She watched him tie it off and he said, “What the hell were you thinking Angie?”

She looked up at Dean. What was she thinking of? In her mind, she wanted to feel; at least take away that cold and emptiness. She voiced it, “I just wanted to feel.”

“Well you sure picked a stupid way to do it,” Dean replied as he tied it off. “Damn it Angie why are you cutting yourself?”

“I don’t know. I don’t feel anything and I just wanted to feel.” Angela stopped when she realized that she was either not making much sense or she was going to make Dean feel worse. She said, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I didn’t…”

“You have nothing to be sorry for Angie,” Dean replied in the firm tones he used with Bobby. “You did what you had to do to get to Sam. It’s not your fault that the damn demon placed obstacles in your way.” Dean finished tying off the bandage. “If anything it is me who should be sorry. I’m sorry for even asking you to…”

“I wanted to Dean,” Angela replied as she applied a little pressure to the bandage with her thumb. She felt the pain and it was a something. She could even feel her healing abilities kick in. “I wasn’t lying when I said I liked the both of you. I did promise your father…”

“Dad had you promise to watch out for us. If anything I failed because I made a promise to Sam; that I always would be here to protect him. Hell I wanted to find a way to save him from the demon’s plans… not kill him like Dad said I might have to do.”

“I guess there is plenty of blame to go around,” Angela replied as she lowered her hand. She glanced at her arm. It was still sore and her elbow was still swollen. It would be a couple of days. Wounds scarred over to protect the delicate flesh underneath but that coldness she felt, she knew that it wouldn’t scar over.

“Yeah but it’s my doing,” Dean replied as he stood up and went to take another swig of whiskey.

Angela watched him go and slowly stood up and followed. For some reason she was angry but it wasn’t at Dean. At the moment he was a convenient target. With her good hand she pounded her fist on the table while at the same time her powers rustled and a nearby mirror cracked. “Bullshit. Blame goes around. Do not deny me my part.”

Dean was startled at the sudden change and he didn’t fail to notice the mirror cracking. In fact she left a slight indentation in the wood. Then his temper flared, “Dammit Angie! Sam was my responsibility! Ever since the day he was born I swore that I would look after him because that was what big brothers do. Can’t you even understand that? No you can’t because you don’t have a pain in the ass little brother.”

Angela clenched her fist tightly. This surge was not her and she needed to control it. “You’re right that I don’t but you’re not the one who has had to see people that you touch upon their lives just for a moment live, grow old and die or live and some nasty thing out there gets them. Death is easy Dean. It’s easy because it’s a part of the natural order. It’s living that is the hardest.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“That’s right no shit. Try living for five hundred years of more of the same.”

Dean glared at Angela and she glared back. They were grieving the both of them though Dean was sure that something else was going on with Angela. She said she felt nothing. She cut herself to feel. It was worrisome and he didn’t need that now but this was Angela. He made the mistake before about ignoring her and her problems. Sam didn’t so he could do the same. “Look Angie, I’m not as old as you and not claiming to be…”

“I want them to pay Dean,” Angela interrupted. She just needed to get it all out. “It is not me I know it but I am angry and I feel someone has to pay.”

That was a sudden change. Dean looked at her and then looked over at Sam. He started suspecting something but he wasn’t going to say anything. He agreed, “I agree with you there but it will come on its own time.”

Angela calmed down enough and looked around. “You’re right. Sorry I said anything. Just crazy ramblings.” She went to a chair facing a window and sat in it. Once in her chair, she began playing with objects on the floor making them move with her mind. She began honing her mind onto thoughts of what she wanted to do to Jake Talley.

Dean frowned as she just shut down and went to go play with her powers. This was bad but he just didn’t know what to do about it now. He took the other chair and placed it so he could face his brother. _Oh Sammy._

****

Night fell fast in the woods. Jake knew how to survive though. He was military and that was what they taught him in boot. He pitched camp and made a fire as he contemplated about what he had done. He was in Afghanistan. He was trained to kill and he did what he had to in order to survive. He started to drift off to sleep when something woke him up. Sitting in front of him looking like he was on vacation was the yellow eyed demon.

Azazel grinned at his champion. He was disappointed that Sam didn’t make it but Jake would do and it would be even more interesting once his favorite little pretty got her head back in the game “Howdy Jake.”

Jake stood up feeling freaked out. “I—I’m dreaming, aren’t I?”

“I got a genius on my hands.” Azazel sat up to better look at his champion. “Well, congratulations, Jake. You’re it. Last man standing. The American Idol.” He grinned in amusement at the whole thing. It wasn’t the first time things hadn’t gone as expected but hell he did figure that things were bound to happen once he put together this elaborate game and his selection of right hand men to make sure his little pretty played along. “I have to admit, you weren’t the horse I was betting on but still, I gotta give it to you. Not only are you the last man standing but you are the number one target.”

“Go to hell.”

“Been there. Done that.”

“Everything you put me through. Dragging me to that place, making me kill those people,” Jake responded indignantly.

“All part of the beauty pageant. Don’t forget you are also a target now.”

“What do you mean?”

This was the part that Azazel was looking forward to. He had no doubt that his little pretty would be on the path to vengeance. She would come with guns blazing and if Alighieri’s report was accurate, the gate was open. He pointed at Jake, “What I mean is that you are going to have one very pissed woman after you and not just any woman.”

“Wait I thought…”

“She’s not one of you crazy kids. She is something else and she needed to be honed just like you. Unfortunately the horse that I originally was betting on was a friend of hers… a really close friend. Needless to say when you killed him, you pretty much set the ball rolling for her to come after you but you shouldn’t have too much of a problem.” Azazel grinned and explained. “Jake I needed the strongest and that’s you.”

“Needed me for what? And I have some crazy bitch on my tail?”

Azazel was loving every moment of this. Jake would do nicely though he would rather have Sam. Sam had been the ideal choice and with his little pretty in the picture… “Oh I got a laundry list of tasty things for you and one of them will be to test my little pretty’s power which shouldn’t be hard now that she has your scent and will be out for blood.”

Jake was scared. He was part of some plan for the demon and then he had some crazy bitch who probably wanted to kill him. And that stuff about her having the scent? Was she another demon? Or something else? He wanted to be done with this. “The only thing I’m gonna do, is wake up, hunt you down and kill you myself.” He felt the confidence come as he said it. The demon screwed with him so it was time for payback.

“You know others have tried and my little pretty has been chasing me for centuries. She could tell you that it’s not easy,” Azazel replied with a grin. He had Jake by the balls now. Time for the clincher. “Trust me Jake. You wanna be a good little soldier here.”

“And if I’m not?”

Azazel stood up. “If you’re a bad little soldier? Well that dear old mom of yours… that adorable little sister?” He started pacing around Jake. This was what he did and he was good at it. He made his next words sound like a threat, “I’ll make certain that they both live long enough to know the chewy taste of their own intestines.”

Jake didn’t like what he was hearing. He still wanted to take this demon out. Maybe the demon was bluffing. He wouldn’t do that to his mother and sister. They were the most important things to him.

“No Jake, I’m not bluffing.” Azazel looked Jake in the eye. He had him.

Jake knew that he couldn’t risk his mother and sister. It then occurred to him that the crazy bitch the demon mentioned could have helped if he didn’t kill her friend… whoever it was. He looked at the demon who was uncomfortably close and asked, “What do you want me to do?”

Azazel was pleased that he had Jake on board now. This would be fun especially for little pretty. She killed once without mercy and she would do it again. Well she did with that business in Tennessee. He grinned at Jake. “Like I said. Genius.” He reached up and patted Jake on the back of the head.

Jake didn’t like the touch of the demon’s hand. Still he made his bed and he had to sleep in it for the sake of his mother and sister. He was also worried about the crazy bitch. He didn’t know if he would be able to handle having her on his ass. “What about the…?”

“Oh my little pretty? She’ll be pissed once the initial pain has passed. Surely you must have heard it?”

“I—I…”

Azazel grinned as he put an arm around Jake’s shoulders. The kid had every right to be scared of her. “Oh I know you heard it because you were running away from it. That, Jake was the sound of vengeance and power. You Jake put her at where she is supposed to be. Eventually when the timing is right, you will have the opportunity to kill her.” Azazel paused to study Jake’s face. “I’ll tell you all about her once you’ve completed the first task.”

****

Lenya stood on the outcropping overlooking the town of Cold Oak. In that town was little sister still and it puzzled her that she was not out there sniffing out Uncle’s grand champion and plotting to rip his lungs out or something equally tasty. It was very disturbing.

Lenya met up with Alighieri when the cry came through. It was full of pain and anguish. Uncle had said that if anything happened particularly fatal to the king, a hell would be unleashed far worse than the end game of this game. Lenya heard the cry to the point where it shivered down through her bones. She was sure Alighieri felt it too but he didn’t make a movement.

“Still hasn’t made a move has she?”

Lenya turned to look at Alighieri before looking back down at the town. “No. It is strange. Uncle said that it would be as if home itself had been unleashed.”

“I think that happened when she finally decided to try to take me out,” Alighieri replied as he looked over at the town. “She had the strength and the mental prowess. That Acheri certainly was confused and the way she summoned that staff…”

“You pushed her enough to realize that she was going to have to play rough to get to the king. Seeing the pawn kill the king… that should have been enough.”

“Don’t tell me that you’re worried,” Alighieri teased Lenya. He brought his face close to her neck and gave a tentative sniff. “I can smell the fear on you. It’s rather intoxicating.”

“I’m not afraid of little sister,” Lenya retorted as she crossed her arms. The truth was that she was afraid. She had time to think about it and while it was puzzling, she had an idea why she hadn’t come out of there just yet.

It all started after little sister planned her great escape out of Daddy’s domain. Lenya had been disappointed that little sister wanted to leave so Daddy sent her out to play with her. It wasn’t easy because of the special little brand little sister had on the back of her shoulder. The first time she found little sister was some time in Europe and it was when little sister started her demon killing spree. It was actually a little fun to lead little sister on a chase for a time.

Little sister proved to be more cunning than Lenya could give her credit for. Lenya fell into a trap set by little sister and barely got away but not before Lenya saw the look in the girl’s eyes. They were lively as ever but there was a coldness about them. Lenya had seen that look before and the memory came back…

_“Well, well, well. I never thought I would see you again. Tired of playing in the pit?”_

_Lenya studied Angela from her prison hanging in the air. It was a clever trap. Lenya could make out the devil’s traps and other types of sigils to prevent her from leaving. It was good but she had a few tricks that even little sister didn’t know about. She replied, “I’m never tired of playing with my favorite little sister. Daddy was disappointed that you decided to leave before he was finished with you.”_

_“Well let’s just say that I was finished with him… and you.”_

_“Brave words little sister. I’ve heard a great many stories about the shadow that kills. Tell me something: are you putting Daddy’s teachings to good use?”_

_It was then Angela stepped out into the light. Lenya saw the eyes. Little sister’s eyes were glowing orbs and they flickered with that fire she always had but there was something there. It was cold and calculating. It was as if she were out for blood literally. It appeared that she was going through the withdrawal that others have gone through but it seemed more concentrated. Little sister replied, “Would it surprise you to say that I am but against your filthy kind?”_

_Lenya gave a slight smile, “Not at all. You always were one to stand up for the meat suits but let’s face it little sister, you will never be like them. You be what you always are: a monster.”_

_The reaction was all that Lenya needed. She used her tricks to break the trap she was in and was free. Little sister was always too sensitive to being called what she despised. Well the sooner she learned that she couldn’t change what she was, the better for everyone._

Lenya looked at Alighieri and then at the town. She then said, “Little sister is a planner. She is like Uncle in more ways than she cares to let be known or acknowledge.”

Alighieri scoffed, “Didn’t seem much like it to me.”

“She did keep you close for a time,” Lenya pointed out. “She always believed in keeping her enemies close once she figured it out. That’s why we love our cat and mouse games.”

Alighieri thought that was a load of bull crap. The only thing he saw of the bitch down in that town was that she was weak. Even in a fight for survival and she was the clear victor, she showed mercy. It was the worst form of weakness ever. Oh he could remember the last time they met like it was yesterday. What became hers should have been rightfully his…

_It was time for the final challenge. They said that both candidates had to face each other in combat in order to determine who the true wielder of Absolution was. Alighieri was certain that he was the one. He was bigger and stronger than the girl he had been competing with. He could easily take her out. He was a good sport though and would let her get a few good shots so she wouldn’t lose face._

_It was revealed at the last moment that they were to fight each other to the death. Well fine and Alighieri got into a fighting stance. Her stance was not what he would consider proper. She looked like she would hardly be able to throw a punch. The game master held up his hands to tell them that it was about to begin._

_“Fight!”_

_Alighieri let loose on the girl. He got in a few well-placed hits and he was sure that he broke a few bones with them. She got him back though and that was when he decided to up the stakes. He pulled out his sword and she pulled out hers. He nearly threw up when she said that its name was Absolution. How dare she presume that she was the chosen one?_

_He swung hard at her and she countered. It was a fairly even match and each of them gave each other cuts that were fairly deep. It was then that he decided to get low and dirty. He used his powers as a warlock. He didn’t expect her to retaliate with her own set of powers. Hell he didn’t expect a bloody Halfling to best him. She had him on his back with her blade at his neck. He could feel the power as the tip touched his neck. Suddenly it was gone as she withdrew and stood back._

_She had shown him mercy. He felt disgraced. He stomped away plotting a means of getting revenge. It was then he had been approached by the demon…_

Alighieri hardened his gaze as he remembered that time. She was weak. Now that her precious Sammy was dead, he was expecting something more out of her. He wanted her to reveal her full power. What he had seen was miniscule according to Azazel but it was a start. He wanted to see more and so far he wasn’t impressed. “Well I’m not impressed. If she hasn’t come out of that hell hole by now, she won’t ever will.”

Lenya knew better though. Little sister may have a gaping hole in her soul right now that was like an empty void but she still had one brother. That brother was like little sister when she got in the mood. “She will come out Alighieri. When she does, she’ll be what Uncle has been trying to get out of her since he caught wind of her.”

“That will be the day.”

“You don’t get it do you? Little sister is the calm and meticulous type. She does have impulsive tendencies but even those are thought through and are seen to completion with the deadliest of results. Now that Sammy is gone… Oh Daddy would be so proud.” Lenya smiled in pride. She may have some fear against little sister but it was a healthy fear and it was mingled with pride.

Alighieri gave a slight scoffing sigh. He still wasn’t sure about this. Sure he heard the stories about her and her rampage in Europe and then the Americas but he didn’t quite believe it. Hell he didn’t believe Lenya either. All of their kind were liars anyhow and self-serving. Well he had his orders and he would follow them. There would be time soon enough to face the bitch who took what was his. “Fine whatever you say. I just hope she comes out soon.”

“She will. She will.”


	15. Chapter 15

The nighttime was peaceful but it was hardly comforting to Dean. Ever since taking his position looking at his brother, he hadn’t moved. Angela hadn’t even bothered him except with the occasional noise from her ‘practice.’ She was gearing up for revenge but she hadn’t left yet and he didn’t know why. So he was left to his thoughts unaware that she was listening to everything that he was saying to his baby brother.

“You know, when we were little and you couldn’t have been more than five you just started asking questions. ‘How come we didn’t have a mom?’ ‘Why do we always have to move around?’ ‘Where’d Dad go?’ He’d take off for days at a time. I remember I begged you, ‘Quit asking Sammy. Man you don’t wanna know.’ I just wanted you to be a kid. Just for a little while longer.”

 _Angie did too. That was why she never showed up but always watched out for us._ Dean smiled a little at the memories and even as he thought about Angela and how she came into their lives. In their talks, they talked and she told him that she would watch out for them when they were kids.

It was creepy when he heard it but he realized that he was grateful for it. She watched their backs and he was free to look after Sammy. “I always tried to protect you. Keep you safe.” Dean paused for a moment. The next words came out with a slight hint of pride at himself because it was the truth. “Dad didn’t even have to tell me. It was just always my responsibility, you know? It’s like I had one job and one that I gladly took. That one job…”

Dean felt the tears start to come. He couldn’t show it in front of Angela but it was hard. Then again she wasn’t paying attention. His voice choked, “And I screwed it up. It’s not Angie’s fault Sam. It never was. I blew it and for that I’m sorry.”

The tears fell then. Dean wiped them away. “I guess that’s what I do. I let down the people I love. I let Dad down and now I guess I’m just supposed to let you down too?”

Angela had stopped what she was doing and had been listening to Dean pour his heart out to Sam. She quietly moved to stand behind him hoping that her presence alone would provide a soothing one for the grieving hunter. Her heart cried when she heard the sense of failure and defeat in Dean’s voice. He blamed himself as she blamed herself and as she said earlier, there was plenty of it to go around. Dean’s anguish was like fuel for anger and it strengthened her resolve to seek vengeance but that would come on its own accord. Until then she would be there for Dean. She had a promise to keep after all. As she remembered that, the throbbing void lessened but she felt strengthened and the practicing helped.

Dean was unaware that Angela had moved behind him. His focus was on Sam and how he may have failed him. “How can I? How am I supposed to live with that? Angie lived through it and I can see how it hurts her. How does she do it? What am I supposed to do?”

Dean’s lower lip quivered. “Sammy. What am I supposed to do?” It became too much. He stood up and gave a violent kick at the chair he had been sitting in. He shouted, “What am I supposed to do?”

“What do you think you have to do?”

Dean turned to see that Angela had come to stand behind him. Her eyes were flickering and he could tell that she had been crying. He realized that she had been listening to everything and just by being there she was saying that she was there and not to mind her pain but to let out his and she would help. He asked, “What kind of question is that?”

“A reasonable one,” Angela replied as she walked towards Sam. For the first time since Sam had been placed on the bed, she touched him on the forehead.

Sam’s body was cold, like any corpse she had touched. Her touch was gentle as she ran her fingers through Sam’s hair. With slow and deliberate movements, she placed a kiss on Sam’s forehead while saying something in a language that Dean couldn’t understand. Angela straightened up and looked at Dean feeling the last of Sam’s hair filter through her fingers. She continued, “You have asked what you are supposed to do. I am asking what you think you should do. They are two different things Dean.”

Dean couldn’t fault that as he was processing the fact that Angela just kissed Sam. It was platonic but it was the first of that kind of contact. At least it diverted his thoughts and brought into focus what she was asking from him.

What exactly did he think? Dean thought that he wasn’t even supposed to be there. Hell he was supposed to be dead. First when he got electrocuted and that faith healer healed him but someone had to die so he would live and then when Dad gave his life so that he would live. As far as Dean was concerned, he was the one that should be lying cold in the grave… not Sam. He was surprised that Angela didn’t feel that way since she implied that she disliked messing with what she called the natural order.

Dean inwardly pondered the question while Angela stood there watching him. He knew that she was waiting for his answer and knew that she had infinite patience. She was willing to wait until hell froze over and she thought he was bad when he latched onto an idea and wouldn’t let go. Well as far as he could see, he didn’t deserve to be alive. He had cheated death twice now and he had been living on borrowed time. He knew what he was going to do.

Dean knew that the idea was being a complete hypocrite since he risked much to save that one guy from becoming puppy chow. Yet he thought that if Dad could do it, he could. He just couldn’t bear with living with the fact that he failed his brother. He failed in the one job that he had considered number one throughout his life. He couldn’t even contemplate a life without Sammy by his side and being the general pain in the ass.

Angela watched as Dean thought about what he was going to do. She could tell that he was not going to bother hiding the tears that were flowing. That was fine. His secret was safe with her. When she finally went to see Sam, she felt ready to say her good byes. It didn’t make it less painful but she felt that she could continue living a little while longer. Besides she knew that Sam would want her to look after Dean. She could do that.

It was bold of her to touch Sam as she did but it felt right and it was how she said good bye to friends long dead. She gave the kiss of farewell and spoke in her native tongue saying, “As you cross the river, know that you are in my thoughts and heart as I stand on the shore and wish you farewell. I will remain and look after those left behind until we are together again.”

Now she was waiting for Dean’s response. She had some ideas and some that would probably backfire on her. She could appeal to higher beings to bring Sam back but that was like trying to work though a government bureaucracy. She didn’t want to get Dean’s hopes on that. There was another option and she prayed that Dean wouldn’t choose it but judging by the way he was in thought, she surmised that would be the choice.

“Angie, could you do something for me?”

Angela turned away from her thoughts and looked at Dean. “What do you want me to do?”

“Can you look after Sam? I need to go.” Dean felt bad for not saying anything to her about his plan but he didn’t want to hear it especially from her though he would rather hear it from her. He gave a pleading look.

“Sam will be looked after,” Angela replied with a nod. She wondered what Dean was up to. It wasn’t until Dean started the engine of the Impala that she figured it out. There was no way that he would do it alone.

She gave a shrill whistle and Cerebus came. She said, “Cerebus. Protect Sam. No one comes near him until Dean and I come back and no tearing to shreds. Understand?”

The bark was reassuring and she took off running out of the building. She relied on her nose and the trail of the tires to find the Impala. Angela had to get ahead if she was going to catch up. She cut across until she was slightly ahead. She didn’t think and took a running leap off the edge of the trail and landed on the roof of the Impala as it was going its neck breaking speed. It swerved slightly when she landed and she peered over the passenger side and knocked on the window.

Dean was startled when he heard a huge thump on the top of his car. He thought something fell on it and swerved to try and get it off. It was then that he heard the knock on the passenger window. He glanced over to find Angela looking in at him. _What the hell was she doing?_

He didn’t stop as she reached down and opened the door and slid in. After slamming the door shut, Angela rubbed her left arm and said, “Well that would be easier if the window were open.”

Dean couldn’t keep it in. “What the hell do you think you’re doing Angie? You said you would look after Sam.”

Angela still rubbed her forearm. That little excursion was pretty much hell on her arm but it was worth it. She used her calming voice, “Sam is being looked after. Cerebus will watch over him until we get back.”

“What?”

“Cerebus, my… pet hell hound,” Angela replied. “He will watch over Sam.”

Now that Dean was thinking a little more clearly, he was surprised that there was actually a hell bitch on their side. He knew that it was around since he heard it patrolling outside while he was keeping vigil over Sam. He still wasn’t convinced that having the thing around was a good thing but this was Angela… Still he had questions about it. “How do you know he won’t go back on your orders?”

“I could have ordered him to rip Talley to shreds. I ordered him to patrol,” Angela replied.

“I suppose I could live with it. I trust you on that,” Dean allowed. “What I want to know is why in the hell did you do that thing you did?”

Angela didn’t look at Dean at first. She sighed and then looked at him, “You need backup.”

“No I don’t Angie.”

“I know you’re going to the crossroads. I’m not stupid.” Angela looked at Dean and waited for him to look at her.

“Dammit Angie I didn’t want you involved.”

“Dean I know why you are doing this so I am not going to try and stop you. You know my feelings on crossroad deals. I won’t lecture but I am coming with.” Angela looked at Dean with an air of finality.

Dean recognized that look. He knew then there was no convincing her. If she wanted to deal with keeping this from Sam then so be it. He knew though that she was saying that she was going to be there no matter what. He sighed, “So, can you help me in summoning the demon and… whatever you did when you… the deal with Dad?”

“That’s why I’m here. I know it sounds strange but because I have, for sake of simplicity, demon blood, I have certain ‘rights’ so to speak. I can summon the demon but I can also be somewhat of a broker. I can make sure the deal is…” Angela rolled her eyes at the thought of the next word she was going to say, “… fair.”

“A middleman then?”

“Pretty much,” Angela replied as she rubbed her arm again. She wished she had packed her pain pills but all she had time to grab was her jacket. At least what they needed were still in the Impala trunk. “Most crossroad dealers respect when one of us enters the picture since it is somewhat of a loophole or legal technicality. I can virtually lay my own terms and make it a binding agreement but only if we put the right stuff in the box.” Angela glanced over at Dean. She didn’t know what he was thinking since she put it along the lines of being a dealer herself. “I’m on your side you know.”

“I know that Angie. I’m not surprised that there is some sort of loophole in deals.”

“I’ve only used it once and that was with your father.”

Dean glanced over at Angela. He knew she was telling the truth. “Then I’m glad you’re on our side with this.” He looked at her as she rubbed her arm. “You all right?”

Angela gave a slight groan as she rubbed her forearm. “I must’ve gripped the roof tighter than I thought.”

“Always making things difficult.”

“Well it doesn’t help when you make it difficult,” Angela replied with a light tone. “I hope that trial run may be considered in the future?”

“As long as you don’t hurt my baby.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

****

The crossroads was like any other. Angela looked around as her breath came out in puffs of smoke. She stood there calmly while Dean was becoming more agitated. As they drew nearer the crossroad, Dean became silent and determined. Angela recognized that he was retreating into the reasons why he was out there and let him stew on it.

Once they were there, she helped him put together the package to summon the demon. She withdrew from her bag two cartouches. They had her name on it as well as the sigil designating her as an eligible dealer. She put one in the box as Dean put the other stuff into the box. She would remove it once the deal was done. The other she strung around her neck and let it show plainly against her chest.

Dean didn’t let Angela carry the box once the contents were placed in the box. He was even going to prevent her from digging the hole but she beat him to it. She was on her hands and knees and digging. Dean decided to help her and together they dug the hole in which he placed the box. Now the hard part was waiting.

Angela watched as Dean started getting agitated and he said in a low mutter, “Oh, come on already.” Finally Dean couldn’t take it and shouted, “Show your face, you bitch!”

Angela had placed herself at a vantage point to see the demon appear. She knew the rules of deals having actually read up on it before helping John with his. She also had some leeway in revealing herself. The demon would know she was there but exactly where on the crossroads was something to be found out. It was one of the few things that Angela could honestly say she liked about this clause of crossroad deals.

The hell bitch appeared right where Angela expected her and said, “Easy, sugar, you’ll wake the neighbors.” As soon as Dean turned to look at her, her eyes flickered to the red that was characteristic of crossroad demons. She grinned like the cat that caught the canary. “Dean. It is so, so good to see you.”

Now that the demon was there, Dean felt himself grow speechless. He wanted to look in the direction of Angela but he got the feeling that it would be unwise. He just watched as the demon approached him.

The demon loved making her clients squirm. She was hesitant at first. The summoning said that a broker was there as well. At the moment she couldn’t see who it was. Damn the clause that allowed for surprises. Oh well she could have fun. She approached Dean saying, “I mean it. Look at you. Gone and got your family killed. All alone in the world. It’s too sweet.”

Angela decided to make her entrance. She let her power surge and her eyes glowed as she stepped out of the shadows and said, “Of course it would be sweet to you. You deal in death all the time.”

The demoness looked at her broker with a smile. She knew who it was and the cartouche showed that she was the broker. She was also peeved at the surprise. “So you’re the mystery broker… Angie.”

Angela flashed her eyes again and replied, “You don’t have the privilege of using that name. Broker rules.”

“Fine,” the demoness replied. She began circling Dean and turned on her charm and pleasure at his helplessness. “Excuse me, you’re gonna have to give me a moment. Sometimes you gotta stop and smell the roses.”

Dean felt his temper get up. He knew that last comment was directed at him and Angela. He gritted his teeth, “I should send you straight back to hell.”

“Oh you should. But you won’t. Not after all the trouble you went to in getting a broker and one that is now the number one feared broker.” The demoness looked at Angela and grinned seductively. To Angela she said, “You thought that it would stay quiet? That cute little display of power? What did it feel like?”

Angela said nothing but narrowed her eyes. She had no idea what the hell the demoness was referring to. True she had a plan of vengeance but that was only for Talley and Azazel. This was a scare tactic. She finally said, “You know why we won’t send you to hell.”

The demoness smiled coyly, “I do.”

Dean turned to face the demon. “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. Following in Daddy’s footsteps. You wanna make a deal.” The demoness smiled some more. It was always fun to torment clients. The broker was glaring at her and sent a shiver down her spine but she knew the broker wouldn’t do anything. Rules were rules. She continued, “Little Sammy, back from the dead and let me guess, you’re offering up your own soul?” The demoness looked over Dean prospectively and then the broker. She knew that deal as well.

Dean replied, “There are a hundred other demons who’d love to get their hands on it. And it’s all yours. All you gotta do is bring Sam back. You give me ten years. Ten years and then you come for me.”

It was a tantalizing deal for the demoness. Dean Winchester’s soul was a prize catch and if she guessed correctly, so was the broker’s soul. The broker though wasn’t making the offer of her soul though and it was puzzling. Frowning the demoness asked, “You must be joking.”

“Does it look like a joke to you,” Angela replied narrowing her eyes.

“It’s the same deal you give everybody else,” Dean added. He was starting to feel desperate about the whole thing. He knew that Angela would let him do most of the talking unless she felt it necessary to intervene and for that he was grateful.

“You’re not everybody else.”

“Then would two souls work? Certainly two valuable souls are worth one deal,” Angela countered.

There was the offer the demoness was waiting for. Now the fun would begin. She walked up to Dean and cooed, “Why would I wanna give you anything? Keep your gutter soul. It’s too tarnished anyway.” She then looked at Angela and said, “Now your soul is a prize anyone would want. That is true but even I am not stupid to take something that would bring bad luck for business.”

Dean wasn’t going to let this go. He had to get Sam back and the bitch didn’t even want Angela’s soul. He countered, “Nine years.”

“No.” The demoness smiled and stepped back to watch the desperation creep up on Dean’s face.

“Eight,” Dean replied.

“You keep going and I’ll keep saying no.”

“Are you that afraid of taking mine?” Angela added into the mix.

To Dean it was clear that the demon didn’t want Angela’s soul or his but he had to keep trying. It was for Sam. Sighing he said, “Okay five years. Five years, then my bill comes due. That’s my last offer. Five years or no deal and I can back that with my broker.”

The demoness was enjoying this. She smiled and walked forward almost as if she were going to kiss Dean and seal the deal. Instead she said, “Then no deal.”

“Fine.”

“Fine.” The demoness smiled and started to walk away. She decided to give Dean a kick in the jewels. “Make sure you bury Sam before he starts stinking up the joint.”

Dean looked at Angela. She motioned with her eyes that it was up to him how far he wanted to go with this. She would back him up. He knew that. He needed Sam back. “Wait.”

The demoness had been waiting for this and said, “It’s a fire sale and everything must go.” There were possibilities and she turned to face her client.

Dean finally got her attention. This was a last act of a desperate man. “What do I have to do?”

“First of all, quit groveling. Needy guys are such a turnoff.” The demoness studied Dean and the broker. She could see the desperation in both but the broker was more reserved. Hell the broker was willing to offer her own soul but she couldn’t take it. Not unless she wanted wrath brought down. Sighing she said, “Look. Look, I shouldn’t be doing this. I could get in a lot of trouble. But what can I say? I got a blind spot for you Dean. And I have a healthy fear of your broker there so you can see what a position I am in. You Dean. You’re like a puppy. You’re just too fun to play with.”

“Glad to see that you know I mean business,” Angela replied. “So will there be a deal?”

The demoness sighed in a resigned sort of way. “I’ll do it.”

“You’ll bring him back?” Dean looked at the demoness firmly in the eye. He had to make sure.

“I will. And because I’m just such a saint, I’ll give you one year and one year only.”

Dean could hardly believe that the demon was actually going to make the deal. He was going to get Sam back. Angela though wasn’t so sure. There was a catch to this. One year was a short time to make plans to try and get Dean out of his deal but plausible and already her mind was working on that possibility. Yet there had to be something more. She needed to know and replied, “That is more than fair considering your… position.”

The demoness gave a smile at the broker before reverting to Dean. “But here’s the thing: If you try and welch or weasel your way out, then the deal is off. Sam drops dead. He’s back to rotten meat in no time. So? It’s a better deal than your Dad ever got. What do you say?”

There was catch. Angela knew it and now was effectively bound from fixing this. She wouldn’t risk hurting Sam yet she couldn’t risk harming Dean either. It was just like that dream. Dealing devils was the phrase but it wasn’t her deal. It was Dean’s and he had to take the plunge if he wanted Sam back.

Dean considered the options. He knew it was wrong but Sam shouldn’t be dead. He was the one that was on borrowed time. He couldn’t let Sam down. Biting the bullet, he took a step forward and sealed the deal with a kiss. It was despicable even with the demon tonguing him with that kiss no matter how attractive she was.

Angela watched the deal become sealed. She knew Dean would make that choice because it was Sam. What she didn’t expect was the sudden pang within. It was like the void was being filled but it was all of a sudden and she tried hard not to gasp. What the hell was going on?


	16. Chapter 16

The world came back in a flash. Sam opened his eyes to find that he was in a very rickety old bed. He looked around trying to figure out what was going on. He remembered seeing Dean, Bobby and Angela and a white hot pain. Then at one point he thought he heard something but it was in a foreign language. It was all too strange for him and he began to look around for any sign of the familiar. It was then he heard a slight growl and whine.

Slowly Sam looked towards the source to see a bunch of papers shuffling and heard the creaking of floorboards and the click of nails on them. Was that a hell hound? Sam had no idea what the hell was going on and made a move to get up but winced in pain.

The hell hound reacted by coming closer and giving a whine. Sam backed away not sure if he should run since the thing was so close. He didn’t even consider how strange it was that the thing whines when he grimaced in pain. The thing would probably have him in less than a second and he didn’t have any iron or salt around. Great.

It was completely unexpected when the hell hound came up and nosed his hand. Sam frowned as he felt the drool and wondered if the world had gone insane. Here he was with a hell hound that seemed intent on being… nice? It was something akin to Dean being in Wonderland while sick with a fever. He looked down at the thing and said, “Okay, so you aren’t going to hurt me?”

The hell hound responded with a whine and nuzzled Sam’s hand again. As far as he was concerned, his master had given an order. While she was gone, he had taken the time to sniff the body. Even though there was no life, the hell hound knew that there was importance to the master and her companion that she chased after. He could smell both of their scents on him. He would do his job. He nuzzled Sam’s hand again.

Sam took the response to mean that the hell hound wasn’t going to hurt him. That didn’t mean that he should let his guard down. He got to his feet and slowly moved wary of the soreness. It was weird to have the hell hound watch his every move. Even though he couldn’t see it, he could tell that it was there. It wasn’t that hard with the breathing it was doing. He frowned and looked at the thing. “Okay I get it that you’re not going to hurt me but do you actually have stay there and watch me?”

The hell hound made sort of a grunting noise. Then it sat down. Sam could tell that it was sitting because he heard the shift in weight. Sam thought that this was the strangest thing he had ever met in his life. He felt that he could breath slightly easier since it was obvious that the thing wasn’t going to hurt him but it did feel weird that it felt obligated to watch him. It was clear though that the hell hound had no intention of moving from its spot so Sam decided to put up with it. “Okay so you’re going to be a peeping tom. You have to admit that’s a little creepy even for a hell hound.”

The hell hound made a noise. It was like when an inquisitive puppy made a whining sound when it didn’t quite understand. The floor creaked from the slight shifting of the weight. It then gave a bark.

Sam frowned at the hound. “Fine but it is true. It is creepy that a hell hound would go from being Cujo to a harmless pooch.”

The hell hound barked. He liked this human. He could see why master wanted him to protect him. The hound barked again.

Sam raised his brows at the response. It wasn’t like he could understand the thing though it was strange that the thing seemed to understand him. There was something peculiar about the whole situation regarding the hell hound and the first thought that came to mind was Angela. She had a knack for drawing the strange to her. That had him thinking about where everyone was.

He looked in the next room and saw the bag of medical supplies laid out. Some remnants of food were lying around. He also saw a bloody rag on the ground and started walking towards it to pick it up when he noticed that the hell hound was following him. He turned to look at the thing and asked, “So you’re following me too?”

The bark was hardly encouraging. Besides Sam found that he was still very sore all over and realized he wouldn’t be able to bend over too much. He had an idea and wondered if it would actually work. He looked at the hound and asked, “Can you do anything besides follow me around?”

The bark accompanied by the hound nuzzling his hand was some sort of an answer. Sam gently wiped the drool away. “Okay. Can you go pick that rag up?”

The reaction was instantaneous and Sam thought that a horse was stampeding through the building as the hell hound raced over and picked up the rag and brought it back. He had gripped the door frame just to keep from being knocked over. The hell hound came back to him and held the rag out. When Sam didn’t take it the first time, the hell hound gave a slight whine. Sam accepted the rag hesitantly saying, “Thanks. Good boy?”

The hell hound barked and then walked over to where it had been sitting before and sat back down. Sam wondered if the world was really going insane or if he was. At least the rag in his hand was very real. He looked at it and recognized the pattern right away. Even under the layer of blood that virtually covered the whole thing, he knew that it belonged to Angela’s shirt and in fact was a shirt sleeve. He found several rips in it and he worried if she was all right. Unless that was his blood and she made field bandages.

Thinking about blood and injuries reminded him of what happened with Jake. He took off his jacket and struggled to look at his wound. He found a mirror and noticed another nearby with a nasty crack in it. Wincing he lifted his shirt to turn to see. At that point he didn’t care that the hell hound was looking at him. It was obvious that it wasn’t going to leave anytime soon. Lifting his shirt, he could make out the scarring on his back.

He frowned in his examination. _Damn, I know Angie is good but that good?_

The hell hound harrumphed from his place where he had taken to lying down. Sam looked at the thing and said, “What?”

The hound made another sound. Sam could swear it was like Angela was teasing him. Then the insane idea that the hell hound was hers crossed his mind and he immediately dismissed it as absurd. The hound harrumphed again and Sam responded, “I don’t even know what that’s supposed to mean.” When the hound didn’t respond, Sam continued, “Look I don’t know what to think of you at the moment since your kind would have treated me like a chew toy by now. All I know is that I’m here and you’re here and I have a scar from a knife wound that was probably Angie’s doing.”

The hound made a noise. It sounded like a reassuring rumble. Sam felt like giving up since talking to animals and expecting them to answer you was bad enough but this was a hell hound. “Well I guess we are stuck together for the time being.” He then went back to inspecting his wound while trying to work out the soreness of his limbs trying to ignore the rumbling of the hell hound that was watching him. _Pervert mutt._

****

_The meadow was so pleasant with the clean smell of fresh air filtering into her nose. There was a tree nearby overlooking a valley and of all things one of those English cottages nearby as well. She walked through the meadow looking around. Everything was there but something was missing._

_She knew she had to find it. Looking around as she walked by, she saw images. She saw the demons she fought, the spirits and she heard laughter and memories of conversations long since past. It fast forwarded to a shade of the demon and Jake Talley. Yet she walked past it. She had to find it. There was the demoness smiling and saying that in the end there was no way out._

_Suddenly it became cloudy and foggy. She was still in that meadow. She was searching for something. She knew it was something familiar but she didn’t know what. Always searching…_

_Angie?_

Angela slowly opened her eyes and found that she was leaning on the door of the Impala. She blinked slightly as she realized that she had fallen asleep on the way back to Sam. _Great. Some back up partner I turned out to be._ It didn’t occur to her that the rate at which she had pushed herself finally caught up with her when the deal had been sealed.

“Finally. You okay Angie?”

Angela looked over at Dean who was steadily driving. She could make out the first rays of light and realized that morning was coming. She looked at her person and found that the throb in her arm had dulled some but it felt like she was feeling every injury she sustained over the last day or so. The strangest feeling came from within. It wasn’t a physical injury but she felt it all the same. It was like a healing wound. It was sore and tender and that emptiness was starting to fade.

Realizing that Dean was waiting for an answer she replied, “I think so.” She pressed her good hand on her chest as if to rub that inner ache away.

Dean had been worried ever since they got back into the car after the deal was done. He had noticed that Angela had been walking a little more stiffly back after she said something to the demon in a language that he didn’t understand. Judging by the way the demon reacted, it wasn’t very friendly and he hoped Angela hadn’t done anything to jeopardize the deal to bring back Sam. He dismissed it as being someone who didn’t have faith in her and he did. Maybe it was a warning, some broker thing. He meant to ask once they were on the road but once Angela got in, she let out the breath she must have been holding and propped her head in her good hand. It didn’t take long for her to drop off.

Dean had been tempted to pull over and check on her but the murmurings she gave in her sleep told him that she wasn’t dead and he got the feeling that if he tried to wake her up, she would have told him to stop being an idiot and get back to Sam. So he drove occasionally glancing over her to make sure she was all right. It was when she started making coherent words in that same language that she had been speaking to the demon in that he got worried and even more so when she twitched in her sleep. Since then he gave tentative pokes and shakes to get her to wake up.

He finally got her awake when he called her by name and he asked her if she was all right. Her response was hardly reassuring especially when he noticed that she was pressing a hand to her chest and giving a slight grimace. “I think so my ass. Is it your ribs?”

“What?”

“Ribs, Angie. Is it your ribs?” Dean almost shouted at her but he realized that she was not completely there. He felt the sense of urgency rise. It could be that she broke a rib and it had punctured her lung or something. Thing was she wasn’t coughing up blood or having trouble breathing. Bruised ribs maybe?

Angela still pressed her hand to her chest while frowning and trying to make sense of it all. Her thoughts drifted back to the dream she was having. The shades she guessed were memories but that persistent tug, searching for something, it was what bothered her. She knew she needed to find something but she didn’t know what and yet it was very familiar. As soon as she focused on it, the tender healing wound throbbed. It was strange indeed. “Not the ribs.”

“Then what Angie? Don’t tell me you did something too. I…”

“I didn’t Dean,” Angela replied in reassuring tones. “I was just basically warning the demon as I closed the deal. I think my injuries are catching up to me.”

That mollified Dean somewhat but it was hardly convincing. Something was up with Angela. After he had finished the kiss with the demon, he turned to walk away. He had walked past Angela who was looking rather stiff but her gaze was on the demon who seemed to be waiting for something. In that moment, he noticed that the ashen color that made her look like hell was receding and her normal coloring was returning and she seemed more alive.

He was already feeling dirty for making the deal and he hoped that Angela wasn’t going to do anything. When he heard her speak to the demon, he wasn’t so sure but the demon left without question after saying something to Angela in the same language. Sure Angela said that it was basically a warning as well as the closing of the deal as she explained to him when she proclaimed herself his broker. What he didn’t know was that she made a promise in those words.

To the demon she said in the ancient language, “So bitch the deal is done and all is legal.”

The demon replied in the same language. It was rude not to respond in kind. “Of course. So how does it feel to send another one of your pets to the pit?”

The eyes flickered into glowing orbs. “You have your deal but as the broker I add a stipulation. You so much as harm Sam, then you will show yourself to me and I will kill you. That I invoke by ancient law.” She held up her left hand to show the bloody palm and squeezed a few drops over the site where the box was buried.

The demon hissed and narrowed her eyes. “You don’t know what you are doing. I’m the only thing that holds Sam’s life in the balance.”

“Like I said. If you harm him and that includes death, you will die for it. This deal is now closed.”

Dean knew that Angela did something and it was then he noticed a little bit of blood on her hand. He resisted the urge to grab it and look at it since she would probably clonk him in the head for it and she could hit. So instead he studied her as she rubbed her chest. “Are you sure?”

Angela looked at Dean and noticed the worried expression on his face. She replied, “It’s not physical Dean. It’s something else. I don’t feel so cold and empty anymore.”

Dean kept his eye on the road but his mind was turning over what she had just said. Earlier before he decided to go to the crossroads and make a deal, she mentioned feeling empty. She cut herself because she said she wanted to feel. Now she said that empty feeling was going away. Dean wondered if it was something about her mojo that she didn’t know about. The reason he was going with her not knowing was because of the reaction she was having. He said the only thing that he could think of saying at the moment, “Well that’s good… I think.”

“Probably,” Angela replied still rubbing. It was like when a wound got to itching and you couldn’t help but scratch. Of course that made it worse but the discomfort was something that was driving her crazy. Trying to divert her attention, she turned over her left hand and began to inspect it. She ran her thumb along the scar that had reformed.

Angela couldn’t help but give a slight smirk. Even after cutting herself by reopening the wound, it still scarred over and didn’t fade. She did it twice. The second time was when she added the clause to the deal. It was probably stupid and it was contradicting the agreement between the demon and Dean. Yet it was her right as the broker. She was not going to play nice anymore… well she would play nice but not to the point where she was considered a pushover. She was done with that and she let it be known to the demon.

“You’re not thinking of cutting yourself again are you?”

Angela stopped rubbing her thumb along the wound. Her muscles were sore and tired. Even that ‘nap’ hadn’t relaxed them enough. She would have to dig deep if she was going to finish this business with Azazel once and for all. Then she would think about ways and means of breaking Dean’s deal or other options that she wasn’t sure if she was ready to face again. She stopped rubbing because the last time she did that, she cut herself and Dean threw a fit. She replied, “No, just thinking.”

“About what?”

Angela didn’t want to let Dean in on what she truly had been thinking of. He would protest vehemently. Instead she switched the topic towards the reason for them being out there. “About what to say to Sam.”

Dean gave a slight frown at that. There was no way he was going to let Sam know that he made a deal. Sam didn’t need to know. Angela knew that but why was she bringing it up? Did she think that he didn’t have a plan? Or was it that she wanted to know so she could conceive a plausible lie herself? This was the reason why he didn’t want her to come along when he made this deal. It was the secrets and partial telling of the truth that led to them being separated. He replied, “Sam doesn’t have to know what happened.”

Angela raised her brow at Dean. That was enough to distract her attention for now. “You think he shouldn’t know about the deal you made?”

“Come on Angie,” Dean gave an agitated look in her direction. “If Sam knew then he would be trying to find a way to break the deal and that would be after he gives the bitch face accompanied by a lecture about why I was stupid to do it in the first place. Not to mention he’ll round in on you and ask why you didn’t try to stop me. You know how Sam is. God how can you even stand the questions he gives?”

Angela gave a slight smile. “They don’t bother me Dean. It used to bother me when people would poke, poke, poke because I wondered why people would ever want to know about me. As to taking the brow beating that may come, it’s nothing.”

“You’re a poor liar when you’re beat Angie,” Dean replied. “You split after the things I said about you.”

“The same as any human reaction,” Angela replied as she gently stretched her limbs as much as they and the space she had available would allow. “But I came back. I admit I still have my issues. We all do but hey…”

“Yeah you did come back and I appreciate it,” Dean replied meaning every word he said. “And it’s not your fault because I know you would never do anything to hurt Sam or me. At least not intentionally.”

“That’s kind of you to say Dean and I know you mean it.”

“You know I don’t say anything I don’t mean… except when I get angry or shit like that.”

Angela gave a slight chuckle, “I know.” She sighed, “So I take it that you have a plausible story to tell Sam when we get back?”

“Do you have one to explain the hell hound you left guarding him?”

“The truth,” Angela replied. “I might as well face the music with the whole thing. It may sound like the craziest thing ever but at least it is the truth even if it is the most absurd thing ever.” Angela turned to look out the window at the passing scenery. It was nice with the sun beginning to rise.

“How did you manage to turn a hell bitch into your pet?”

“You mean how Cujo became Jerry Lee?”

“You know…”

Angela turned away from the window and chuckled. “It was all because of the puppy dog eyes.” She looked at Dean who managed to give his signature ‘what the hell’ face. She continued, “I know I said I am made of tougher stuff than that and it’s true. I am sucker for kids and apparently pathetic injured animals. I basically tackled the thing and he bit me. I stabbed him. I woke up to dog slobber and pathetic moaning and it is rather creepy to see one of those things looking pathetic. I was going to kill it but I guess my sympathy won over and I healed the thing. It decided to follow me.”

Dean knew the story but it was like she said. It was crazy enough and sounded like an ugly lie. It was one of those things that needed to be heard over and over again in order for it to finally sink in. Well the thing didn’t attack him and he trusted her so he was glad something was looking after Sam though he could hardly imagine what Sam would think about having Cujo watch him like that. “You are right and it does sound like an ugly lie.”

“Welcome to my world. So… about Sam?”

 _She is persistent just like Sam._ Dean couldn’t help make the comparison. Those two were very much alike that it was a wonder they didn’t see it. Well at least he had a year to see it and milk it for what it was worth. He sobered quickly. The reality was settling in.

He just gave his soul, his life for his brother. Maybe if Dad were there, he would have gotten a serious ass chewing for doing something stupid but to Dean, it was not stupid. It was his job to look after Sam and he may have royally screwed up but this was what he was willing to pay. He glanced at Angela who was looking thoughtfully out the front windshield at nothing in particular.

 _She’s doing that palm rubbing thing again. What the hell is up with that?_ Dean had concerns that she was going to do something stupid but she just kept rubbing it and rubbing it. If she had any regrets about helping him broker his deal, she sure wasn’t talking. He managed to catch a glimpse of the thing white line, the tell tale mark of a scar.

Dean didn’t know that scar was from their first case together but the way she was rubbing it. It made him wonder if she had a nervous twitch or any other habits like that. What he did know was that it was the same marking when she cut herself earlier and he marveled at her rapid healing abilities. It was something that would come in handy on jobs but he knew that she would see it as one more thing that didn’t make her quite human.

_Sam didn’t see her any different._

Dean knew that was true. Hell if anything, Sam pestered her more times for chick flick moments than anything. At first Dean thought it was curiosity but then he started teasing him about checking her out. Sam hotly denied it and Angela, well she made it seem like it was one big joke and yet they got along like they were old friends. Then again Sam was the nice guy but he also had a certain instinct about certain types of people but he could be a little too trusting.

Yet his judgment about Angela had been correct. Dean was the one that while being friendly, kept a part of himself back. That he could say contributed to everything that turned out the way it did. She certainly held no grudge especially after that one outburst in Tennessee and he admitted he deserved that. Sammy had been right though.

“Do you want me to follow your lead? I’m a pretty good actress when I want to be.”

Dean looked over at Angela. She wasn’t looking at him but still doing that palm rubbing thing. It was irritating to Dean since he didn’t know what she was thinking but it was apparent that she was aware of the situation. He did have to credit her with being able to stay focused. It was downright creepy but in that good sort of way. Dean sighed as he thought about what he was going to do.

The accursed town came into view and Dean started feeling a myriad of emotions. On top of it was the fact that he did feel dirty for doing what he did. To top it off he was going to lie to his brother about what really happened and he dragged in Angela to the lie as well. He didn’t want it to be this way but she said that she wanted to and it vaguely occurred to him that she was punishing herself still and it also occurred that she was living up to some promise she made. That didn’t make him feel any better about dragging her into the whole thing.

He didn’t say anything until they got out of the car and she grimaced as she stretched her frame out. He winced when she rubbed her bad arm with a frown on her face. When she was finished, he finally said, “Follow my lead.” He then went in holding his breath.


	17. Chapter 17

Dean knew that Sam was alive but it was like being hit on top of the head with a blunt object. To see his brother alive and well, he just wanted to run immediately to him and… He had to school himself to say calm. He said, “It’s good to see you up and about. It was pretty close there. How are you feeling?”

Sam maneuvered his shoulders aware that the hell hound had lifted his head and was watching the scene. Whether or not Dean knew about it was something to learn however his brother was more concerned about him. He studied his brother just as Angela followed him in. Her expression was more subdued but the slight widening of her eyes was something to think about. He replied, “I’m fine.”

Sam didn’t get anything more out for Dean had crossed the room and grabbed him into a hug. It was a hug that was a little too tight and Sam could feel it reflect in his sore muscles. “Uh Dean?”

It took a couple of more seconds before Dean released him with a quick apology. Sam watched as Angela seemed to ignore the exchange and went about putting things away. He noticed she had stiff movements especially with her left arm and would have said something but Dean had his attention. “How long was I out?”

Dean for his part couldn’t believe that Sam was standing there alive. Sore and battered but alive. He replied, “It was close.”

Sam frowned. Somehow something didn’t feel right but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “Okay. I really don’t remember much.”

Dean knew that the questions were going to start coming. He had to head Sam off before he asked something and he inadvertently revealed what he didn’t want Sam to know. He had to know though how much Sam did know. He sat his brother down, “Okay well let’s start what you do remember. Hey hell mutt can’t you give us some brother time?”

The hell hound rumbled slightly. It nuzzled Sam’s hand leaving a drooling mess on it before bumping Dean on the leg. It then trotted out of the building and sat in front of the door. It rumbled again as if it were bored. Dean muttered, “Darn mutt.” He looked at Sam and said, “So what do you remember?”

Sam made a slightly puzzled frown. So Dean knew about the hell hound. He looked over at Angela who was ignoring them completely as she slowly put her vials in order. He wiped his hand and replied, “Well I remember seeing you, Bobby and Angie. Then I felt this sharp pain… like white hot fire kind of pain and the next thing I know I’m waking up. Was it that bad?”

“It was touch and go. For a moment we thought you weren’t going to make it,” Dean replied. “But we got you inside and patched you up.” That was partially the truth but it was close to what was pretty much forbidden territory. However Dean knew that Sam wouldn’t be satisfied until he had some idea that was palpable. His persistent questioning was annoying and it sure drove Dad crazy. How Angela put up with it was beyond him.

Sam listened to Dean’s response. Something was off about that. “Dean, you can’t patch a wound that bad.”

It was true. Dean was good with a needle for small patch jobs but for the serious stuff like this, that was a little beyond Dean’s ability even if he was the sorcerer’s apprentice. Dean had to come up with an answer. He knew that she wasn’t going to like it at all but it was the only thing that was remotely true. He uttered the lie effortlessly, “No… but Angie and Bobby could. In fact it was Angie who controlled the bleeding and everything.”

The thump from one of the pictures falling off and glass breaking was hardly encouraging of Dean’s story. He almost wanted to curse out loud at her. She said that she would follow his lead but if he really stopped to think about it, he poked at something that she was still coming to terms with and that was the fact that she felt she did a crappy ass job in patching Sam up.

It was a relief but also suspicious when Angela calmly picked up the mess she created and placed it in a corner and out of the way as if she were tidying up Bobby’s house. Of course she didn’t go into housekeeping mode but instead rolled up her medical supply bag and left it on the table just in case. The front door opened of its own accord and she calmly walked out and the door closed behind her.

Sam frowned at the whole thing and asked, “Is Angie okay?”

Dean realized that this was going to be more difficult than he imagined. At least attention was being directed away from Sam and what happened to him. Maybe Angela was helping him out with that little outburst of hers. For a moment he felt bad that he brought up her part in patching Sam up but she did say that she would follow his lead. He replied, “She’s still in patrol mode from her experience. So who was that kid?”

That answer didn’t quite satisfy Sam’s curiosity about what just happened. As far as he could tell he had only seen her use her telekinetic abilities just once and that was at West Point. Now the talking in his head, that he experienced and so did Andy and Ava… it was unusual. He realized though that Dean was dropping the issue so he would have to find time to ask her about it. He answered Dean’s question, “Jake.”

As soon as Sam said Jake’s name, he felt anger. He felt betrayed. He had worked to try and keep all of them alive so they would make it out of there and then the demon threw the monkey wrench into the works. Ava was already gone and she killed Andy, she tried to kill Angela and she tried to kill him. For reasons he couldn’t name, he was angry that Ava had tried to hurt Angela. He had been shocked at first but it was similar to someone trying to hurt Dean. His thoughts roved to the fact that Ava tried to kill him but Jake stopped it by killing Ava. Then Jake… “Dean I want to rip him apart.”

Dean saw the anger rise in Sam as well as he slightly winced in pain. “Easy there tiger. You just woke up and you need to get your strength back. Let’s get you something to eat. You want something to eat?” Dean was aware that it sounded a little desperate but he just got Sam back. He didn’t want him doing anything that would jeopardize what he went through to get Sam back.

Sam watched his brother. Dean did have a point even though there was work to do. And he did feel hungry. His thoughts then turned to Angela. She was probably starving. She may have trained herself to eat less but she still ate more than he or Dean in order to keep up her energy. He gave a nod of his head. “Has Angie eaten?”

That was a good question and Dean didn’t have the first damn clue. She just kept going and didn’t say a word. She had to be starving by now. “I don’t think so but don’t worry. I’ll get plenty of grub even for the hell mutt out there.”

“About that Dean… what’s with…”

“I’m still getting used to it myself. Ask Angie about it but later. I’ll be back, Sam. Just don’t do anything stupid okay?”

Sam gave a slight roll of his eyes. “Fine. Just get the food.” He sat back to show that he wasn’t going to do anything hoping that it would reassure Dean. That was highly unlikely. Dean would more likely worry all the way to wherever he decided to get food and then back. Time spent in Angela’s company was an upside and she was always honest with him.

Dean gave a look over to make sure that Sam wouldn’t do anything before heading out. That worked out good. It certainly wasn’t the best but at least Sam bought the story that he sold. Though there was the possibility that Sam would pester Angela once he was gone and that could make the whole thing go south but she was good when she needed to be but she wouldn’t try that mental thing on Sam. He went out towards the Impala and found Angela sitting cross legged on something, possibly a boulder near the car and she was staring out in the direction that Jake kid had run. She had a scarf wrapped around her neck and figured she got it from the car. No biggie. He said, “I’m grabbing food, Angie.”

“Scent is fading but it will be found again,” Angela muttered. She then moved her head to give a backwards glance towards Dean. She replied, “Sam will be looked after.” She gave a slight smile as if to say that she would stick to his story.

Dean gave a slight nod and got into the Impala. She was definitely not back to normal. It was like she changed somewhat. She was following his lead sure but whatever was going on in her mind, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to find out. Maybe Sam should pester her.

****

“Sam, what are you doing?”

Sam ignored the question for the time being as he fitted the scarf he took from around her neck, fashioning a sling. He gently lifted her left arm and slid it into the sling. When he was finished he said, “There.” His hand lingered on her elbow as if to stabilize it.

Angela studied Sam’s handiwork. As soon as Dean left, Sam came out slightly wincing and looking for her. She watched as he skirted around Cerebus who did nothing but watch him and make a rumbling sound and gave a slight chuckle. She turned back to where she was looking and lifted a good size rock and practiced summoning. She wanted to be able to do it at will to the point where she didn’t have to look at what she wanted.

Sam came up to her just as she had it right in front of her. He asked her if she was okay. She answered his question readily enough. She should have known though that he would be persistent and when he mentioned the incident inside, she turned to look at him. With her concentration lost, the rock fell. It was instinct to reach out to catch it but unfortunately she had used her bad arm and the sudden weight was too much. She ended up dropping it after narrowly managing to deflect it away from smashing into her knee.

It was then that Sam grabbed her by the arm and finally took a good look at it. He loosened his grip when she winced and gently turned it over. He raised a brow at the swollen elbow as he felt along the joint. He then took her scarf and now her arm was in a sling. Angela had to admit that it felt better. She didn’t have to remember to find a comfortable prop for her arm even if it was a bit uncomfortable. She said, “Thanks but you didn’t have to do that.”

Sam tried not to roll his eyes at her. He sighed, “Angie, could you for once not say that nobody has to do anything?” It came out mean rather than annoyed and he regretted it. He knew she was always putting others first and would ignore her injuries even if she were bleeding out until a convenient moment. “I’m sorry. It’s just…”

“You’re right,” Angela interrupted. “I’m just used to being the one that patches everyone else up and then worrying about me later.” It was a kind statement on her part since she still harbored the notion that she was not worth anyone else’s time. She knew that Sam was only trying to help. She gave a slight smile. “Thank you.”

“It’s the least I could do after what you did for me.”

Angela was still smiling as she made a slight sound and diverted her gaze. Dean put her in a hard spot by mentioning that she helped patch Sam up. In her mind she failed at that and her reaction caused her powers to go a little crazy. That was part of the reason Sam was out here now. The thing was it felt like an ugly lie and she was going to support it. She replied, “Bobby did most of the work. Bum arm you know.”

Sam looked at Angela as she looked down at nothing in particular. It puzzled him greatly since she had never been afraid to look him in the eye before. In fact her behavior in general was slightly off and it made him wonder if something happened to her. It was like she was hiding something and she was torn about whether to say anything or not. Her reply though did make sense. He decided to follow along with her ‘bum arm’ comment. “You wanna talk about what happened?”

Angela didn’t really want to since it was treading close to dangerous territory but as long as she was careful, she would be able to hold up Dean’s story. She adjusted her sling to make it more comfortable and shifted her weight to ease the stiffness of sitting as long as she had. She replied, “I was thrown into the game.”

“Ava mentioned that you were coming to rescue us,” Sam prompted.

Angela knew she had taught Sam too well in regards to asking questions. He was good before but she really added to his skill set. He was piecing it together and wanted her side. Alright, she would give it to him. “The queen must make it to the king.” She knew that Sam wouldn’t get it so she explained, “Chess talk. The demon dumped me in the middle of the woods and I basically had to make it to you. Of course it’s his game and his rules.”

“The hell hound?”

“Cerebus. He bit me and I gave him a nice cleave in the shoulder. He woke me up with drool and moaned at me and he looked pathetic and that was creepy. I am so glad that humans can’t see them.”

Sam frowned slightly. It sounded like a really bad lie but he had heard crazier things from her before.  He replied, “You had pity for a hell hound?”

“Showed mercy… and the kicked puppy look was pathetic enough to make me fold. So I fixed him up and he followed me. After that the Acheri demon and a bunch of human rat traps and then the demon’s minions… all designed to just annoy me.” Angela turned to look in the direction that Jake had gone. She was right in that the scent was fading but she had it ingrained in her memory. She would know it when she smelled it again.

Sam put together that the elbow and the bruises and scratches were a product of her entanglement with the Acheri and the other demons. The white bandage with the dark stain showing through was the bite from… Cerebus. It seemed that Angela had a tough time as well. Sam was shrewd enough to guess that the situation forced her to use her abilities that he had only seen a few times and judging by what happened inside, they were more than what he originally thought when he saw them. Glancing at Angela he noticed her distracted air and figured a switch in topics was in order. “So it was you who asked Cerebus to watch me?”

“Sorry about that.”

“No it’s fine. We had an interesting conversation while you were out though I’m not sure how much he understood.”

Angela had to smile. The attempt at diverting the conversation from topics she didn’t really want to discuss was a welcome one. It was made as polite conversation but there was a lightened air to it and it was like the times before this mess started. She could work with this. She replied, “He probably did. It’s new to me too.”

Sam caught the smile. It was encouraging and he chose his questions carefully. It continued until Dean came back with food. Sam almost laughed when he saw Angela’s nose twitch. She would probably never admit ever how hungry she got.

****

Angela ignored Dean’s glances at her arm in the sling. He couldn’t convince her to use one when he patched up her arm but she was now wearing one that Sam rigged. She gave a slight shrug of her shoulders as she picked up a slice of pizza with her good hand and took a small bite. She was hungry but food going into her stomach just was… It was like trying to swallow a rock. Still she hadn’t eaten much since Azazel dropped her in the middle of his game and with everything going on, her energy was waning.

She took small bites and chewed slowly, well aware that both Winchesters were watching her on occasion. She gave a slight shrug and said nothing but leaned back and propped her feet up on a broken piece of furniture and continued to eat slowly. If she had to venture a guess, the rock feeling of food was a result of the fact that she was playing along with Dean’s story. She had never been anything but honest with Sam and it made her guilty.

Finally getting tired of the stares, Angela said, “I’m not pigging out for your benefit and I’m not going to make myself sick.”

“I didn’t say anything,” Dean replied.

“You didn’t have to. The way you two are looking at me…” Angela couldn’t finish her slice and tossed it out towards Cerebus. The hell hound caught it and gulped it down. “I’m not freaking china.” The bottle of whiskey that she found when Dean came back slid across the table and she caught it.

Both brothers watched as she unscrewed the cap with one hand and took a drink. The only other thing was a couple of bottles of soda and they knew she wouldn’t touch the stuff. Not after what happened in Grant. Sam raised his brow at Dean knowing that they were both guilty of watching her eat and making sure she was okay and probably for their own reasons. At least in Sam’s mind she ate something... well one and half small slices.

Dean returned the look with one of his own. He saw that she was not going to ask anything about Sam’s experience but then again she said he was driving the bus on this. Her mood changes were the best indicator and maybe he shouldn’t have given her the look when she didn’t dig in with her usual gusto. He changed the subject and directed his question to Sam, “So do you know what the demon want by putting you here?”

Sam replied, “He was looking for the best one. He wanted us to duke it out until the last one standing. He told me in a dream.”

To Dean that was unusual. There had to be a reason for all the psychics. Hell it seemed even a waste to choose all of those kids only to have them kill each other off. “Tough break. Poor Andy. I liked the guy.”

 _I liked him too. At least he tried._ Angela thought about the conversation she had with Andy before he died. She expected the flirting and she found it kind of cute coming from him. Maybe she would have agreed to going out for a cup of coffee. Dean’s flirting was more like tolerating a child which was why she turned the tables on him. She listened to the conversation not saying anything. She had put the bottle of whiskey down and picked up Sam’s jacket and started working on stitching the hole up which was a feat in of itself since she hadn’t bothered to remove the sling and she only had one good arm.

“All I know is that it has to do with something big,” Sam said. He caught a glimpse of Angela holding his jacket and she was fixing it.

“So he told you that only one of you was going to make it out in a dream? Did he tell you anything else?

Sam remembered that part well. That dream that Yellow Eyes showed him revealed that the demon had fed him demon blood. He had demon blood inside of him and that was when the realization hit that was the source of his abilities. The fact though that he had demon blood, it made him feel dirty and for some reason he didn’t want Dean to know. So he lied, “No.”

_Eventually you will have to tell him, Sam._

Sam didn’t flinch when he heard the voice in his head. Her voice. He glanced over and found that she had finished repairing his jacket and was inspecting hers. He couldn’t help it and thought mostly to himself, _And you’re going to be bossy about it._

_No. I just don’t want something like that secret tear you two apart. Yes, I know about the demon blood in the psychic kids._

_So you couldn’t find time to tell me?_

It was creepy that he could actually respond to her now and he wondered how much of it was the demon blood and how much of it was her. The first time he couldn’t and maybe distance was a factor. Now that she was not that far away…

_I figured it out after Tennessee. I always knew that there was something off. Besides how do you tell someone that they had demon blood fed to them as a baby without any proof? For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I won’t say anything if you don’t want me to._

Sam couldn’t fault her for that. _Thanks. I’ll say something when it’s right._

Dean watched as Sam glanced over at Angela who appeared to be ignoring them but he knew better. He knew that she was listening to the entire conversation. She probably had some theories already but she was like one of those people who followed that stupid rule about children not speaking unless spoken to. It was damned annoying at times because sometimes her feelings showed on her face. “Okay.”

“You know Dean if the demon only wanted one of us to get out alive, why did Jake and I both walk away?” Sam decided to keep the conversation going. He may still be in a little bit of pain but there was a job to and he wanted some payback for what Jake did.

There was another lie. “Well I mean, they left you for dead. Sure they thought it was over. So now that Yellow Eyes has Jake, what’s he gonna do with him?”

That started a back and forth between Sam and Dean about stopping whatever it was. Dean was trying to keep Sam from jumping in too soon. He didn’t sell his soul to a demon to raise his brother from the dead only to have him jump back in and get even more banged up. That led to Sam asking about the Roadhouse and Dean had to reveal the painful truth and surprisingly nothing came from Angela about it. That led to Sam asking about things that Ash may have found.

“Bobby’s working on it right now.”

“Great. He’s only a few hours away so let’s go.” Sam started to get up chomping at the bit. He was no longer hungry now that there was a job to be done.

“Easy there. Sam you just woke up you gotta get back your strength and you almost died in there,” Dean replied and motioned for his brother to sit back down. He had to mention Bobby and now Sam wanted to go and see him and he didn’t have time to give Bobby the heads up. Not unless he wanted to get caught in the lie he told Sam.

Suddenly there was a rip of cloth and both brothers looked to see Angela had removed the sling and was ripping the lining from her jacket. She ignored them completely as she finished ripping out a nice square and put it under the rip in the sleeve and started her repair work while muttering something.

Sam knew that there was something on Angela’s mind and it was bothering her greatly. Sometimes she would do things to be irritating like the ripping of her jacket but when she ignored them completely and the fact that she talked in his head again, something was up. Maybe she did have some idea of what was going on and wasn’t telling or this whole conversation was irritating her which didn’t make sense since she was not really getting involved.

Dean was starting to come to the same conclusions and wondered if his story was really going to get shot to hell because of what she was doing. She wasn’t saying anything which was good but her actions were provoking curiosity from Sam. Did she want him to pester her? Or was she trying to make him feel guilty about what he had done to bring Sam back? The latter he figured on since he knew she really had a thing against crossroad deal but it wasn’t like she stopped him. Hell she volunteered to be there and make sure no tricks went on. It had to be because he wasn’t going to tell the truth.

Dean looked at Sam who was now looking back at him. He knew his brother wanted to go and he wasn’t going to get any help from Angela. “Look can’t you just take care of yourself for now?”

Sam knew that Dean was worried about him and was just doing he had been doing since they were kids. Right now though there was the situation with the demon on hand. That came first. He looked up at his brother and replied, “I’m sorry. No.”

Dean didn’t need the puppy dog eyes this time. Sam was going to be persistent on this one. He might as well face the music. “Alright Sam.”


	18. Chapter 18

Jake had never felt such power before. Ava was right about the learning curve. It was intense and he liked it even though he had been basically bullied into doing it. He had his mother and little sister to think of. The demon threatened them and he’d be damned if he was going to let that one slide. He continued trekking through the forest following the demon’s instructions.

“Nice day for a walk though I would be careful if I were you.”

Jake turned towards the voice. His eyes lighted on a woman just standing there. He wasn’t sure if she was another demon or not. The calm demeanor she had was intimidating more than the toughest sergeant he met in Afghanistan.

She was beautiful. Olive skin with dark hair that came to her shoulders and the eyes… the eyes were a unique color like amber. Her features spoke of Mediterranean origins but her voice bore no accent. She was dressed as if she were going for a hike; jeans, boots two shirts and a jacket. She was staring intently at him with a grim expression.

“Are you another demon?”

The woman gave a slow smile and laughed out loud. She started walking towards him replying, “No. I am something rather different.”

“I’m dreaming aren’t I?”

She drew her face into a grin as the sarcasm laced her pretty voice, “Such a smart lad. Brave new world isn’t it? Demons in your life, psychic powers…” She wriggled her fingers just to make fun of him.

Jake didn’t do anything. Instinct told him that it would be a bad idea to do anything rash. Yet this woman knew him and what happened in his life. He didn’t remember seeing her in that place. How did she…?

“I know. You’re wondering how I know about you,” she replied as she started pacing around Jake again. “You’re wondering how I would even know how and where to find you. You’re thinking and asking yourself if I was telling the truth about not being a demon. Well Jake, do you feel like another revelation in this game?”

She had come to a stop facing Jake. Jake took the moment to study her. Her body was honed to athletic perfection but her movements were slow and deliberate… like a cat. A predator looking at its prey. Jake wondered if this was another one of those things the demon wanted him to do and he was curious about what she knew. He replied, “How do you know about me?”

“I know many things. In my line of work, the game is won by who knows more.”

“You think this is a game?”

“Better to think of it as a game since Azazel does,” and she gave a slight pout that was meant to make fun of him. “Besides I know you are up to something for the demon. It must be something that requires a human touch.”

“You don’t know nothing.”

She then looked at Jake and her eyes flashed. Jake watched as they turned to glowing orbs. It was like looking at some sort of monster worse than the demon. She said, “I know about the beauty pageant and that you wouldn’t be doing this if didn’t have something to lose.”

“What do you mean?” Jake tried not to react at the fact that she was treading on dangerous ground.

“You know what I mean.” She gave a slight frown before continuing, not letting the light go out of her eyes. “You see Jake, I’ve seen people do things they wouldn’t consider doing ever but there is always a pressure point. That one thing that would drive a desperate man to do the unthinkable because he couldn’t bear the thought of losing someone close to him. One of the top ten of those things is family because in the end all you have is family. Am I getting warm?”

“Alright what do you want?”

“Ah so I was right.” She then started pacing again but spoke in matter of fact tones. “Jake, I once knew someone who told me that three strikes and you are not out. There is always one more thing that could be done but of course the irrational side like fear and emotions tend to cloud this fact. It can led them to think that the only way out is to kill. That may be the case in certain situations since I’ve been in plenty of them myself and they weren’t very pleasant since there is that bothersome thing called guilt but I think you had a chance if you refused to play along.”

Jake froze. Sam, the guy he killed said something similar. He said that they could get out of that place together. He didn’t believe it and reacted and killed him. Could it be that she was the one that the demon said would be after him? How did she know where to find him? He started to panic slightly as he replied, “Who are you?”

She smiled a slow smile and walked right up to him and looked him in the eye. Jake felt his throat convulse as she stared at him. She then said, “A person who could have helped you if you just refused to play along.”

“You’re her. The demon warned me about you.”

“Oh so Azazel did decide to tell you about me. I should feel flattered… maybe honored but no. I am actually rather pissed.” She then stopped smiling and her face became grim.

Jake could see the anger that was showing through. With the glowing eyes… she was pretty and scary. Her hair billowed slightly but he could tell that there was no breeze. This was definitely the woman that the demon said would be after him. “You going to kill me?”

She was still angry but she seemed more controlled and that was what made it scary. She replied, “No. You took something from me before you ran off and I do want to kill you but I find myself in a position to offer redemption.” She paused and watched the confusion form on his face before continuing. “I am willing to make you pay but in a way that could be beneficial to both our souls. Don’t play Azazel’s game but instead help us to stop him.”

Jake couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Was it some trick on her part? Was she really going to give him a chance to turn away? It sounded too good to be true. “How do I know you aren’t trying to trick me?”

“I am giving you a chance because that is what I am.” Her expression softened a little even though it was still in that grim line. “I am giving you a chance just like Ava. She made the choice to turn away from my offer. You have it too.”

“It sounds too good to be true. Can you guarantee my family’s safety if I help you?”

“I have friends who would be willing to look out for them. As a soldier you should know that there is always a risk.”

Jake debated on whether or not to accept her offer. It was a good one. She was offering to protect his family if he helped them. Hell she wasn’t even going to come after him for what he did. He managed to figure out that she was angry at him for killing Sam since she mentioned that he ran away from her.

_Come on Jake. Do you really think she will let you get away that easily? You killed someone close to her. That kind of thing doesn’t go away so easily._

It was like the demon could read his thoughts. Jake looked at her. There was a flicker of expression in them, compassion or was it pity? There was no way she would give up coming after him. If she was as the demon described, then she would stop at nothing. No. He had to do what he was told to do. He replied, “I don’t think so. I have my own scores to settle.”

She sighed. “A pity then. Know this Jake, when we come to stop you and you so much as try to kill my companions, you will get something far worse than any physical punishment you may have received from the old me.”

“I’ll be waiting for you and I’ll kill you.”

“Hang on to that thought Jake. It may be your driving force if you have the balls to stand up to Azazel.” Then she was gone leaving Jake alone to wake up and ponder that dream he had.

Meanwhile riding on the highway towards Sioux Falls, the occupant of the back seat slowly opened her eyes and peered at the backs of the two heads facing forward. She made no noise but studied the two boys silently sitting. They didn’t even notice when she drifted off mostly to restore her stamina. It was coincidence that she found Jake wandering around the dream realm and she took the opportunity to talk.

As much as she wanted to seek the path of vengeance, she knew that she had to at least offer a chance for Jake to back out. She did it for Ava. Of course he refused. He was scared and that she could understand that even if her rage was at a boiling point. Hell demons were good at making a raw deal sound good. Well she did offer and she would offer again if and when they met but she also made it clear that if he did anything to harm her own, she would deal it back and with a much harder punch. She was still the same but she was also different. She wouldn’t be too much of a pushover anymore. She closed her eyes again and went back to sleep.

****

“Are you out of your flipping mind?”

Angela stood there looking at Bobby as he shouted at her. She had been expecting this since the minute Bobby opened the door and looked like he had seen a ghost. She didn’t blame him since the last he knew Sam had been a corpse. At least she could tell the truth with Bobby. She refused to lie on that account since Bobby pretty much took her in. She replied, “I said it was up to Dean. Remember Bobby?”

“But that doesn’t mean you let him do something so stupid and idiotic,” Bobby retorted.

Bobby had been surprised to see Sam standing there alive and well with Dean and it took much effort to play along with Dean’s story. He of course figured it out when Dean couldn’t quite look him in the eye and then Angela stood there looking just as guilty but the sling her arm was in prevented Bobby from really coming down hard since it reminded him that she had been injured too. He had chewed Dean out a good one and couldn’t understand why he thought his life wasn’t worth anything to the point where he traded it for Sam’s.

“I understood his reasoning,” Angela replied. “I know he thinks that he wasn’t supposed to be alive and maybe it is true. After all two people died so he could live and in the laws of nature… it’s a life for a life. It’s how the world maintains balance.”

“Cut the bull crap Angie,” Bobby retorted. “You know as well as I that selling your soul ain’t the way to go.”

“Then how should it have gone Bobby? I could have appealed to the higher beings, but there is no guarantee with that option. It’s like bureaucratic red tape. I couldn’t get Dean’s hopes up like that. That would have been crueler than anything he will face when his number is due.” Angela looked down at the ground as she adjusted her shoulders. She had changed out of her bloody clothes into clean ones and threw on a new jacket. Her scarf was still a sling and she was getting used to the feeling. In fact the swelling had gone down sufficiently enough for her not to need it but she didn’t need three nags after her.

“That don’t mean ya don’t try at least. What’s the matter with you? It’s like you care but you don’t care.”

“Maybe I do and maybe I don’t.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? Angie you let Dean do the most stupidest thing ever and not only do you let him do it, you actually helped dictate the terms. I would have thought that you would have at least done something…”

“I did try Bobby,” Angela interrupted. “I did the same thing I did for John and offered mine. Believe me I didn’t want Dean’s soul going to hell. The bitch wouldn’t deal for mine.”

“So you think your life is worth even less than Dean’s? Are you an idjit?”

“No. Just someone who’s had to live a long life and one that is tired of having things taken from them.” Angela sat down on the back of an old truck that would need serious restoring if it was to be in working condition. “Living is hard Bobby especially as long as I’ve been around. Being around the boys is a good thing and what happened to me, to Sam, to the kids and Dean… I think I’ve been living life in a bubble. I thought I was past this since…”

Bobby looked down at the girl sitting on the rusty heap. Maybe he shouldn’t have pushed her so hard but he just couldn’t understand how she could let Dean do what he did. That conversation with the goddess explained a few things but it didn’t help in the situation. In fact he felt like a hypocrite for not telling her but the request was clear.

_I know that this is much information to bear with Bobby Singer. However I know that you will do what is right per our agreement. You are a good soul and they will come to rely on you. I trust though that you will not reveal anything until she discovers such things for herself and asks. She will appreciate it more though she may not say._

Bobby wanted to say something. At least explain why she was one minute behaving like a bitch and the next the Angela they knew. It would certainly put some things into perspective but he could see where the goddess may be right. Angela would probably be pissed but from what the goddess told him, it would be a good thing. Still he couldn’t believe that it would go so far to the point where she let Dean make a deal and she was there to witness it!

She was looking up at him. Bobby was still pissed at what transpired but that look she was giving him. It was like looking at a kicked and beaten puppy. He was upset but there were mitigating circumstances going for her. She also mentioned other things that piqued his interest. “What do ya mean living in a bubble?”

Angela looked off to the side for a moment before going back to Bobby. She replied, “I’ve had good and bad experiences. The bad are the life changing kind and can make or break a person. I’ve had blood taken forcibly from me which could be a sort of rape and have been called a whore. I’ve been shot, crushed and stabbed at and have nearly died more times than I care to count and that is not counting the times that I actually did die. Most people think I’ve toughened up from that and I think to an extent I have with the exception of my slayer days.”

It was actually surprising to hear that Angela had been through so many near death experiences but it was hearing that she had died before that was the kicker. “You died?”

Angela realized that she had revealed things that she didn’t intend to and actually had kept from others. People she met over the centuries marveled over the things she knew about death and hell and it added to the mystery of her. It sort of made seem like an understanding person or one of those sage like people. Yet it was a secret she kept buried along with a few others. Inwardly she grimaced. The cat was out of the bag on that one. She replied, “The first time was around my hundredth birthday. My father and I were on a case. Demon activity but our Intel was faulty. It was a nest and we were caught. I was young and foolish and ended up getting the worst of the beating. We got free but were separated. I was… stabbed from behind.” She looked at Bobby.

To Bobby that sounded eerily similar to what happened to Sam. It had him wondering if she had experienced déjà vu when she saw Sam get stabbed in the back. It would explain the reason why her behavior was so erratic. As if she had been reading his thoughts she said, “No I wasn’t thinking about that when Sam was stabbed. I was remembering the night the boy’s mother died.”

“You’re a strange sort, Angie.”

“I know. I became defective that day I first died. Father gave his life, well his blood to save me. So maybe I do know a thing or two about Dean’s rationale in this. I was just on the receiving end.” Angela gave a wry smiled as her eyes lighted on a piece of junk. She concentrated and began lifting and moving it. She didn’t break concentration as she continued her conversation. “The whole experience opened the gate Bobby. I can call on my powers more easily. It’s a little scary.”

“I’ll say. I never have really seen you use them. Sam mentioned something about you convincing a cop to let you guys out of a speeding ticket.” Bobby knew he was venturing into uncharted territory for him and felt it best to tread carefully.

“Well considering Dean’s mug is still America’s most wanted I thought it was a necessary evil. It was necessary to calm Barcalow on our second case together. The thing is Bobby when I first discovered I had this ability, I was freaked. Then the order tested me for full capabilities. That made me turn off the whole thing except when I got a little emotional or if it was necessary. This thing… what does it mean?”

Bobby shrugged his shoulders. This whole conversation drifted from the stupidity of letting Dean make a deal to what was going on with her. It was what Bobby wanted to know all along ever since he saw her throw her temper tantrum. Granted he had an idea why, he found that he wanted to hear from her what she was feeling and thinking. “What did you do when the demon made you run a marathon to get to Sam?”

“Well he threw two demons and the hell mutt at me and that ended with me getting a new pet. Then the Acheri but that was controlled by Ava. Yet for a moment it seemed confused especially when I told it to back off. Then there was Alighieri. That was when I let loose everything.” Angela began playing with the dust.

Before Bobby had started chewing her out after he chewed out Dean she had taken a look at the map that he had pulled out and committed it to memory. The grizzled hunter had pointed out that it was demonic omens and they seemed to be circling around a certain point in Wyoming. She had given a wry smile when she saw the location since the last time she had been in that state she had been at the whim of demons that were in league with Azazel.

Using the toe of her boot, she drew the map but an enlarged version where Wyoming was. She honed in on the area that the demons appeared to be circling. She had seen formations like this before… well once before. That was when she had been young and foolish and it started this whole mess. It was perplexing though. Was there really one in Wyoming?

“Who the hell is Alighieri?”

Angela realized that Bobby had asked her something while she had been drawing and studying her map. She replied, “Another demon. He once was human but became a demon. That’s a long story and one I would rather not talk about.” She went back to studying the map.

Bobby watched as she studied the map she had drawn during the course of her conversation with her foot. He had to marvel at her ability to memorize and reproduce images that she had seen maybe minutes before. “That’s fine and dandy but don’t you think that you should at least let us in on this guy? If he showed up now, he would most certainly be there for whatever is going down. Am I right?”

“He won’t be there. He just wanted a chance to take me on and get me to show my powers. It was the same thing when we last met,” Angela replied as she slid off her seat and began studying the map more closely.

She knew this location well. She paid a visit when she was trying to track him down to pick his brain on some nasty omens she had found. It could be possible.

“If it’s personal don’t you think he would try again?”

Angela didn’t look up at the grizzled hunter. She gave a slight smile and a chuckle. No way. Oh God she should have seen this since she had seen formations like these before. There are few things that could make demons cluster around an area but never cross it. She had to laugh out loud. It was good to laugh over something so obvious. It was like when she figured out to get a message to Sam while stuck out in the middle of nowhere.

“Okay what do you think is so funny?”

Angela stopped laughing long enough to end to say something. “Sammy Colt, you old bastard. So that was what you were doing while I was back east and making my way west. No wonder you left those clues about where you were.” She stood up and started walking back towards the house.

“What in Sam hill are you talking about?” Bobby had to run to keep up with Angela.

“I know what the formation is in Wyoming. Sammy Colt…” Angela gave another short laugh. “I should have known. Bobby the demons can’t get in. That’s what the demon wants one of the psychic kids for.”

Bobby had no idea what she was rambling at but he was willing to follow her lead. Eventually she would let him in. He watched as she bounded in the house, and give Ellen another hug. It was less forceful than the first one. She then grabbed one of her books that she had left behind and started shifting through pages. All the while she was muttering and chuckling. Well he would find out soon enough.


	19. Chapter 19

Austin looked around the main room at the piles of books and papers that were stacked around. He could tell that the house once had a nice up keep but it since then had been placed on the back burner and had been dedicated to the business of hunting. He could see that there were some touches of order and he recognized it as being Angela’s touch.

_So he gave you a place to stay and you had to pay him back didn’t you?_

Austin smiled at the thought. She always did like to do fair trades. Even if she was invited as a guest, she went out of her way to be a general help. He was glad that she was all right even with her arm in a sling.  He looked at the Winchester brothers studying the map that Ellen had brought. Before they got sufficiently down the road, she had him go back and help her dig out the safe and get what Ash left her a message about.

That was fun in of itself since she called him a big boy with muscles. He always did love to hear humans and their expressions. Ellen amused him and he could see why Angela always came back to the Roadhouse. The time spent together allowed Ellen to loosen up a little in his presence. He thought that it was a typical hunter thing when it came to working with the very things that they hunted.

They eventually made their way to Bobby’s place. He parked outside the salvage lot hiding the truck so no one would think about stealing it. Austin led the way in being wary about everything. He knew Bobby to be a careful hunter but it was old habits and he was a school guardian when he wasn’t playing professor. Like most vampires, he didn’t bother with a gun since he used his environment around him and they served as pretty potent weapons. He kept Ellen behind him as he inched his way forward.

Ellen said that he was being foolish in a heated whisper but she followed his lead. It was habit for Austin and he suspected that she figured that out but she was also on alert too. That was the life of a hunter. You couldn’t really take anything for granted… not even your friends. They made their way into the junkyard area and started clambering through the piles.

Austin heard the conversation first before Ellen did. He recognized the gruff voice of Bobby and the familiar tones of Dean Winchester. His first instinct was to grit his teeth again but he didn’t. He knew the circumstances behind their first meeting and he really shouldn’t hold a grudge against the guy. His temper died when he heard the tone of voice Dean was talking in. Something had happened and it was not the time to be bringing up past grievances. There was time for that later. The tone of voice sounded sad and he could hear it in Bobby’s voice too.

He led the way towards the voices knowing that Ellen would want to see them and make sure that they would be all right. Once that was done, he would be on his merry way. They got close and Ellen ended up making noise by knocking something over. Of course that ended up with a standoff and then tears of relief on both sides. He said, “Nice reflexes Bobby… Dean. Almost had me.”

“Eh never thought I’d have to see your ugly mug again Austin,” Bobby replied. He patted the vampire’s shoulder. “I guess we better hear the whole story.”

It was an even bigger reunion inside. As soon as Angela saw Ellen, she grabbed the woman in a huge hug and a scolding about not to worry her like that again. That had Ellen replying, “Don’t you be getting fresh with me. You’re the one who should know better. You need to pick up the phone once in a while.”

A little more bantering and then there was Bobby’s acid test. He had Ellen and him go through the battery to make sure that they weren’t possessed. In annoyance he showed his medallion that he kept tucked in under his shirt. Ellen did most of the talking as she explained how she had stepped out, Ash’s call and his involvement.

That was when she pulled out the map that Ash had prepared with the X marks. At that moment Angela stepped outside and Sam started to go after her but Bobby stopped him. That was her, always knowing when something needed to be done. He also noticed that something was different about her. He hoped that nothing bad had happened. He glanced at the others and could tell that they were just as confused as he was about her leaving suddenly. He decided to make his announcement, “Well, as pleasant as this has been, I believe I should go.”

“Wait, you’re going?”

Austin turned to look at Sam. Out of habit he took a sniff. He could smell the demon blood in Sam but he caught a whiff of something else. He smelled that smell before on hundreds of occasions. He gave a glance at Dean who wasn’t really looking at him. Something was up and he wanted to know. Thing was he had to make sure that they didn’t think he was there out of idle curiosity. He replied, “I have my orders, Sam. Granted it didn’t go like it should, well I have to get back.”

“Couldn’t you at least stay and help us figure out what Ash was looking at?”

“Sam, if he doesn’t want to stay…” Dean looked at Austin. “Let him go. He has his orders. At least Angie doesn’t tether herself to the same people.”

That was the truth and Austin didn’t react. Instead it gave him the opportunity to study Dean now that he was looking at him. Something happened wherever Sam and Angela had been. The smell was powerful and he wasn’t even considering the hell hound smell that was lingering. It was something different. He replied, “That is true and I for one am glad of it since such as treasure shouldn’t be restricted. As to my orders, I believe Ellen knows the extent of them.”

“Until you were certain that I was safe,” Ellen supplied. Apparently Austin was working out some sort of angle. Maybe he did want to stay.

“Right so since this is big and even though company is a great protector, I would probably feel more comfortable sticking around for a little while longer. Until I actually get a set of orders.”

Sam shrugged his shoulders, “Great. Do you know anything about the area?”

“That is pretty presumptuous on my age there, Sam,” Austin replied with a grin.

“Sorry. I guess I assumed that you and Angie…”

“It’s all right,” Austin replied as he made a waving motion with his hand. “Unfortunately no about this area. I never been to this part of Wyoming before so I guess a little research is in order. You never know what you might find.” He glanced at Dean and caught his eye.

Dean got the message nice and clear. The vamp knew something was up and it had to do with him and Sam. Damn their sniffers. He probably smelled Angela’s pet hell hound on them both. According to Angela, they stank to high heaven. They reeked of death. He replied, “That’s right. So let’s get started.”

He managed to corner Austin as he was looking through a historic geography book and ask, “What are you really doing here Austin? Checking up on me and making sure I don’t bust a cap in Angie?”

“You assume quite a bit Dean,” Austin replied as he pulled a book and handed it to Dean to look through. “Angie trusts you and Sam with her life. That should say something in of itself. I am sticking around mainly for your sake. Something happened at that place Sam was at and I take it that it didn’t end well.”

“Sam was hurt but Angie and Bobby patched him up.”

“Try that one with your brother. It seems to be working well for you,” Austin replied as he turned the page. “I smelled it Dean. I smelled death on him and not the hell hound that I know is patrolling outside somewhere. Sam died and has been brought back and you played a part in it. A deal was made perhaps?”

“And how did you come to that conclusion? Angie knows things Sam and I don’t,” Dean retorted. He hated the fact that someone else knew the truth behind Sam’s sudden up and about.

“And those things require appealing to forces that have the ability to restore life but that takes time,” Austin countered. “No. A deal was made and I am guessing that you offered your soul. I am surprised she didn’t try to stop you.”

“She told me she wasn’t going to lecture,” Dean replied, falling into the trap that Austin set with his taunting and questions. “She came with.”

Austin didn’t need to hear more. It explained a few things but not all. That was Angela’s business, not his. He knew something was up with her and he figured it was the culmination of what happened, Sam dying, Dean making the deal… it was showing in her face and to top it off, he could tell that she had been playing with the powers she kept a tight rein on. “I understand. You don’t need to explain. I wanted to know. You are not the only one that cares about her.”

Dean studied the book, looking at the page but not really seeing it. The vamp was not evil and Dean knew that. He also knew that the line of questioning was done for a reason. Of course the vamp cared. Hell the vamp knew Angela long before she came it his and Sam’s lives. He thought that they had a thing for each other but it was obvious that all it ever was and would be was friendship. “I get that.”

“I won’t say anything about this. It’s your business after all.”

“Thanks. You know you aren’t too bad for a vamp… Austin.”

Austin was shrewd enough to know that something like that was as close as a compliment he was going to get from Dean. That was enough. Besides he had a similar relationship with Bobby. That had Austin wondering why it was taking Angela and Bobby so long to discuss what they needed to discuss. He got the feeling that the grizzled hunter wanted to chew her out for allowing Dean to make a deal.

He didn’t have to wonder very long because she came in at a fast pace with Bobby trailing behind her. She was muttering excitedly. She paused by Ellen and gave her a hug saying, “Thank you Ellen.” She then went to a stack of books that they didn’t even think to look at and pulled one out. Her arm was out of the sling as she started rifling pages.

****

“Well I don’t believe it,” Bobby said as he carried the book he had been looking at after it had been thrust into his hands by Angela into the room and placed it on the table. “It appears that at each of these points is an old abandoned frontier church.”

“Alright, so what’s so special about them?” Sam ventured.

“Sammy Colt,” Angela replied. She was not looking at the book but she was aware of the conversation. She was actually hovered over the chess board that she used when she wanted to play herself. The other next to it was the current game she was in with Bobby. She was moving the pieces with her mind. It was her second game as she worked out her thoughts.

“Samuel Colt? The demon killing, gun maker Samuel Colt?” Dean asked the question.

“One and the same,” Angela replied. “Holy ground and something unique connecting all these churches together.” She made her move as black and then contemplated for white.

Ellen had her attention divided between the little council at the table and Angela hovering over the chess board. They had started researching and all of a sudden Angela came bursting in and gave her a hug of thanks and pulled out a book and started flipping pages. She then handed it off to Bobby and went to go play chess of all things.

Ellen knew that it was one of Angela’s favorite pastimes. She played with Ash when she would drop by. They had been in the middle of a game when this had happened. Now the girl was sitting over one board and was making the pieces move with surprising speed and without touching them. Ellen had that explained to her by Austin, who seemed to enjoy the fact that Angela was behaving like a crazy person.

Bobby managed to hide the grin that threatened. Angela was back. He had seen plenty of this when she stayed with him. At first he wondered if she had gone off her rocker but once they were back in the house and she was researching with fervor, he could tell that she was doing her thing. When she thrust the book into his hands and went to her chess board, he knew that she was deep in thought. More likely it was about the area and what was there.

Bobby continued as if nothing were wrong and said, “Well he built private rail lines to each of the churches and it just so happens that it forms this.” He picked up a marker and drew lines connecting the X marks on the map Ellen provided.

It was Sam who voiced it, “A Devil’s trap.”

“Yahtzee,” Angela replied as she made a move. “Sammy Colt knew how to trap a demon,” she muttered as she studied the board.

Most people would have said that her obsession with playing the game was a means of hiding behind things. Maybe it was to some degree but it was how she figured out things in regards to the fight against the other side. At this moment she had managed to manipulate the game she was currently playing to reflect the map she had viewed. She had certain pieces designated as the churches and her mind drew the rail lines.

Sam glanced over and wondered what she was thinking of. She certain seemed to be feeling better. She was doing that thing she always did when she found something relevant to whatever she was working on. It reminded him of their case in Grant when she started mumbling about other things and didn’t explain until she came back with her book. The chess thing was new though and he thought she played for fun… well she did clean him out when he asked to play and she asked him what the stakes were. A glance at Bobby told him that it was normal so he would go along with it for now.

Austin decided to speak, “Well that explains why the demons are circling. They can’t get in. It’s not just holy ground. Iron rails too.”

“Right but that doesn’t explain why something so powerful in the middle of virtually nowhere,” Bobby replied.

“Circle the wagons and rally the guns but at an inverse of the sun.”

Dean thought Angela was going completely off her rocker. He was used to her raunchy rhymes she would say just to make Sam blush and entertain him but that comment seemed totally random even to him and he usually was pretty good when she would pull stuff like that. He looked at Sam who appeared thoughtful. Sam said, “Maybe it’s not so much keeping the demons out but keeping something in.”

“Now that makes sense,” Dean replied marveling how Sam seemed to pick apart what Angela said and could make sense of it. He was not the patient type to take the time and sort out her riddles. He did have the sense to realize that she did that so they could come to the answer without her telling it to them. “The thing is that there is nothing in the middle of that but an old cowboy cemetery.”

“What could possibly be in the cemetery that Colt would want to keep locked in?” Ellen asked the question. She had observed the comments that Angela interjected from time to time and surmised that she already knew the answer and she was making them work for it. She guessed that was how she worked with the boys.

Finally, Angela stood up. Her game was not really finished but it was going to work out. It was arranged like the devil’s trap and in the center was the white king. That’s where it was going to stand. It was check but not check mate. Not yet at least. When Ellen asked her question, she knew she had to answer the question. “I know what it is.”

Austin stood up straight from his position of leaning against the wall. The whole scene had amused him and he was impressed with Sam’s prowess at her ability to seem scatterbrained while actually giving hints and his ability to think and guess correctly what she was giving. Bobby was trying to hide his relief so apparently he considered it normal for her. Dean and Ellen’s reactions he expected. He glanced at Angela and she gave a slight nod. She would drive this bus now.

Angela pointed at the cowboy cemetery. “The thing that is important there is a crypt. Sammy Colt told me about it and his plans to keep it sealed.”

“I’m not even going to ask how you knew Colt,” Dean said.

“Good because I won’t tell you. Anyway what is at that cemetery is a devil’s gate. It is a doorway to Hell.” Angela picked up a second book that she had pulled out of the stack when no one was looking and opened it. She flipped through the pages until she found what she was looking for and held it for everyone to see. “There are literally dozens of these gateways scattered around the world. Some are even in places no one would think of looking. This one in Wyoming must have been the one that Colt told me he found. This would be considered a lost gate. Most of the ones that aren’t really hard to spot are guarded like Fort Knox. Some have devil’s traps like these.”

Sam peered at the image of the crypt that was in the book she was showing everyone. He asked, “Do all the gates look like this?”

“No. The intention was to keep the gates hidden from the world because let’s face it, if it were obvious then there would be a bunch of crazies trying to open one of these things.” Angela looked at the image. It was a photograph taken at the time of its completion. She had gotten there near the end and that was when Samuel Colt was on his last legs in terms of doing the job. He gave her the honor of driving the last railroad spike and sealing the trap. “The old adage about hiding in plain sight was given consideration in this case.”

“Alright so this thing is still up and about after all this time?” Dean asked as he glanced at Sam and then at Angela. He finally understood now why the change in her demeanor. The riddle and the chess playing were her ways of getting them to sit, be still and think.

“Why not?” Sam countered, “Most rail lines built then are still in use today. And the demons are circling and they can’t get in.”

“And with them in place no full blooded demon could get through,” Bobby replied as he looked down at the map and the image in Angela’s book. He was curious as to how she knew so much about the gates. Maybe she learned about them from Samuel Colt but he didn’t think so. It would be something to ask her later.

“Well that leaves the hell mutt out,” Dean said. “You think he’ll be willing to stay outside the trap Angie?”

“Excuse me?” Ellen frowned in confusion. She wasn’t sure if she heard right. Apparently there was a hell hound involved and it was on their side? She needed to have a long talk with Angela who made a slight movement of embarrassment but otherwise maintained her composure.

Angela replied to Dean’s question, “He doesn’t have human in him so of course he can’t cross the lines.”

“No. But I know who could,” Sam replied.

Angela gave a nod. Once she figured out and remembered what had been built there in Wyoming, she figured out the game plan. Well part of the game plan since this was Azazel that they were dealing with. She understood now why Azazel wanted the best at least for this part of the game. The strongest was capable of getting through any opposition and opening the gate. Why she was part of the game, she had a vague idea.

Azazel had always had an interest in her. He was always one step ahead of her in her quest to bring him down. Now she knew that he was driving her, pitting her against odds to draw her out. Well draw out her powers. He succeeded in that respect but she wouldn’t play his game with them. She would do what she could to stop him. She glanced at Sam and saw his gaze darken a bit. She was thinking the same thing. She decided to say it, “Jake.”

“Jake?” Ellen frowned slightly.

“I take it he’s the guy that delivered a nasty injury to Sam?” Austin asked the question. Dean told him some of the details about what happened while they were researching the churches on Ellen’s map.

“Yes,” Angela replied after giving a slow blink. Even after finding her way back from the emptiness, she still felt rage at what the kid did. But she would hold up to her end of what she told him earlier. She would give him a second chance to turn away. It was one more than Ava got. “And I think we should pack the gear and head out. He’s got a head start on us but we still got a chance.”

****

“So you’re telling me that you now have a hell bitch as a pet?”

Angela looked at the incredulous look that Ellen was giving her. The woman had cornered her as they got together the gear they would need. She found her pair of guns that she kept around and took one. There were some fond memories of that set and maybe one day she would tell the story to the boys. Right now it seemed fitting to use. Besides they were special guns. She had been loading the one she chose and placing spare cartridges in her jacket pocket when Ellen approached her and asked what that conversation was about Cerebus.

Angela explained the whole story and watched as the familiar look of ‘don’t you dare tell me that lie’ cross Ellen’s face. She replied, “I don’t get it either Ellen. I know I have a thing with animals and you know better than anyone the trouble I used to bring to the Roadhouse with the strays that decided to up and follow me.”

“Those were pranks of yours. This is different,” Ellen countered. “I’m worried Angie. I know you’ve been trying to prove for years that you are more than the product of your blood.”

Angela saw the worry on Ellen’s face. She had every right to be. She was human and was thus fragile. Angela was half human but with the power to kill with strength or freakish abilities if she so chose to do. “I know. I don’t Ellen. I’ve been told by both sides that I am something special and frankly I don’t believe it and really don’t want any part of it but as it stands I am a part of this game Yellow Eyes started so I have to see it through. If it means using freakish abilities then I guess so be it.”

“But you do know your limits right?”

“You mean could I control myself?” Angela gave a slight smile and finished loading her pockets full of ammo. “Having powers like mine is a gift but I have seen those with similar abilities abuse it and they were once good people too. That was why I refused to use them unless there was no other choice. So you tell me Ellen, do you think I should leave the gate open?”

Ellen studied Angela. Something was different about her but Ellen saw that it was something that made her stronger. In what ways remained to be seen but she had faith in the girl and her ability to make the best possible choice. She replied, “I think you’re strong enough to know when enough is enough. Angie, I know something must’ve happened out there and like any bad experience, you have to learn from it but don’t let it rule you.”

Angela was silent for a moment. Ellen had a point and it was one of the reasons that she kept a close relationship with her. She nodded, “Point taken.” She picked up the case that held Absolution. She didn’t know if she would need it but Dean insisted she take it. She led the way out to the car where the others were waiting. Time to check the king.


	20. Chapter 20

The cemetery had that sort of creepy air that the movies liked to portray. Jake made his way cautiously through the place. The demon told him that he had to get to a certain crypt and open it for him. He had the key which ended up being a gun. Of course the demon told him that it was a special gun, the only one that could shoot the demon dead.

He could have shot the demon the moment he handed the gun to him. Yet the demon made a point. He couldn’t go back to his old life. He was AWOL and the job at the factory was somewhat of a dead end to a menial existence. He did have the chance to make things better for his family, for his mother and little sister.

Now he was here at the place. All he had to do was put the key into the lock and the thing would open. He was just about to do it when he heard a familiar voice say, “Howdy Jake.” He turned around to see a sight that was impossible to see.

Sam Winchester was alive and well and pointing a gun at him. Closing in on him was an old man, a woman and another young guy that had to be Sam’s brother closing in on him. They were all pointing a gun at him and closing in. He looked at Sam and said, “Oh you. You were dead. I killed you.”

Sam looked at Jake with anger in his eyes. “Yeah? Well next time finish the job.”

“I did,” Jake retorted. “I cut clean through your spinal cord man. You can’t be alive. You can’t be.”

Sam frowned and glanced over at his brother. Dean returned it but looked away. It was Bobby who said, “Okay. Just take it real easy there son.”

Jake looked at the group. He still couldn’t believe that Sam was still alive. “And if I don’t?”

“Wait and see,” Sam replied.

Jake narrowed his eyes at Sam. “What you a tough guy all of a sudden? What are you gonna do?”

_The question should be: what are you going to do Jake?_

Jake heard the voice. That woman he saw in his dream. She was here. He just knew it. She was here somewhere. The thing was where was she? Wouldn’t she be with this group that was trying to stop him? He didn’t break eye contact with Sam. “You gonna kill me?”

“It’s a thought,” Sam replied through the snarl that formed on his face.

Jake smirked. She was just messing with him. “You had your chance. You couldn’t.”

“I won’t make that mistake twice,” Sam retorted. He glared at Jake as the kid smirked back at him. It was a little unnerving that Jake started laughing. It was a slow chuckle that would have creeped out most people.

Dean didn’t like the laugh that was coming from Jake. “What are you smiling at, you little bitch?”

This was what he was waiting for. Jake’s gaze lighted on the woman. “Hey lady. Do me a favor.” He let his power flow through. Put that gun to your head.” He grinned at the looks that were appearing on the others faces. He liked at how hard the woman was trying to resist. “See, that Ava girl was right. Once you give in to it, there’s all sorts of new Jedi Mind Tricks you can learn.”

“Let her go,” Sam demanded.

“Ellen, put the gun down.”

****

Angela had to take care of something before getting to the crypt. It was a secret that Colt entrusted her with and she had to make sure that it was still hidden. Austin had accompanied her after she explained that there was something she needed to take care of. At first the others thought she was ditching them but not Dean. He understood that it was something she had to do since she gave him a look similar to the one she did before she went to do her job in Tennessee.

Azazel could have known about it but when she got there, it hadn’t been disturbed by Jake. Austin told her to get going and that he would keep an eye out. She gave a slight smile and thanked him for taking care of Ellen. He replied, “Anything for you Angie.”

Angela knew the extent of Austin’s feelings but she didn’t feel the same way. True they shared a few similarities but it could never be more than a friendship. She made that clear before and it saddened her to see that he still had those feelings. She smiled and took off towards the crypt. She had a score to settle. When she arrived the situation was a standoff. Ellen had her gun pointed at her head and Sam, Dean and Bobby were at a loss of what to do and Jake was grinning and taunting them. She had to do something.

Focusing she walked forward and said, “Ellen, put the gun down.”

Ellen felt her body tremble as the gun began to lift away from her head. It was like there were three people at war within her body. There was herself, Jake and the third one was Angela. She then heard, _Ellen, let go and let me in._ Out loud she said, “Shoot him.”

“You’ll be mopping up skull before you get a shot off.” Jake gave a knowing glance in their direction.

“Not if I have anything to say about it,” Angela countered. She didn’t look at Ellen and repeated, “Ellen, put it down.”

Jake looked at the newcomer. It was her. She was giving him a hard look and he could see she meant business. Her eyes were glowing like they did when he dreamed. Her hair was blowing but there was no breeze. He could see that the gun was pulling away. Was she stronger than he thought? He looked at her and said, “You really think you can fight me?”

Angela narrowed her eyes as her mouth became a grim line. Ellen didn’t resist as she asked. It was just her and Jake. She replied, “The question is whether or not you can fight me.”

Jake gave a grin at her. “You know, you actually scared me a bit when I saw you in my dreams and you showing up here and barely undoing my work is not impressive. And you said you would give me a chance.”

Sam glanced at Angela when he heard that. When Jake mentioned dreams, he figured she went dream walking again. She was good at that but he wondered if he misheard when Jake said that she would give him a chance. It sounded like she was forgiving him if he turned away. He frowned a little but it was more out of what to do about this standoff.

Angela had eyes only for Jake at the moment. It was true that she would give him a chance. Well he blew it. She said, “I did say I would give you a chance but I also warned you. As far as I’m concerned, you didn’t heed my warning. I don’t react well when something meaningful to me is threatened. Do you really want to play that game?”

Angela’s eyes intensified in their glow. Jake countered by increasing his juice. The gun was still pointed at Ellen’s head. He looked at Angela and replied, “I’m willing to play but are you willing to risk her life?” He then looked at everyone else and said, “Everybody put your guns down. Except you sweetheart.”

Angela tried harder. Jake was good and she was equally good but she was really pushing it. She had never used her power that way before and it was a struggle to keep the gun a little bit away from Ellen’s head. She was determined though. No one threatened her own and got away with it.

Dean had been watching the scene. This was not going to end well even with Angela’s new mojo. He looked over at Bobby and the grizzled hunter dropped his gun. Dean lowered his and dropped it while looking with disgust at Jake. Sam dropped his even though he was pissed at it. The only one not backing down was Angela. Jake looked at her and said, “You too sweetheart. You may be able to resist but you don’t have the juice to move it completely.”

Angela narrowed her eyes more. She was thoroughly pissed. She then heard a slight whisper from Dean, “Angie.”

She didn’t want to listen but she couldn’t risk Ellen. She released her hold on Ellen but she wasn’t done yet. She would bide her chance. That was the whole point of setting traps on the board. She said, “You still could turn back.”

Jake gave a slight huff as he sensed her backing off. “Okay. Thank you.” He suddenly wheeled around and pulled out the Colt and stuck it into the hole and turned it. The next thing he knew he felt hot pain through his back. Blood seeped out of his mouth and he fell back.

Sam had grabbed his gun and fired unaware that someone else had been firing. All he could see was Jake and his eyes pretty much saw red. There was a sweet sense of satisfaction of revenge as he walked around to get a good look at Jake. It was then that he noticed that he had been joined by Angela and she was holding a gun that was smoking.

Angela walked with a similar lope as Sam’s as she looked down at the body. While Sam had an expression of anger and grimness, there was nothing on her face. It was devoid of emotion. The only sign of life in her face was her eyes as she had not let go of her power. She stood next to Sam on his right and looked down. She cocked her head to the side as she stared at the dying kid. She brought her gun up just as Sam did. _I warned you Jake._

Jake looked at the two staring at him. One had anger and hate in his face and the other had nothing. It was cold and emotionless. Her last words resounded in his head as they pointed their guns at him. He begged them not to. “Please. No. Please…”

Sam would have told Angela to back off but it felt right with her there once he realized she had whipped out the gun that she had hidden under the back of her jacket. She did tell him once that she protected her own and she reacted very badly when they were threatened and he knew how much she cared about Ellen. Well he wasn’t going to stop her. He looked at Jake and he felt his anger reach its peak as he pulled the trigger just as Angela did. They both fired two shots to end it. Sam now understood what it meant when she said that she knew what a life changing experience it was to take a human life.

****

Austin had watched the entire scene play out. He watched as Angela did mental battle against the Jake kid. He could tell that she could have taken him out but he knew that she would never risk Ellen, Sam, Dean or Bobby to get revenge. It was then that he noticed the gun that she had packed into her jeans under her jacket.

Dean and Bobby were quick as they grabbed Ellen and the gun to save her. What was disturbing was the fact that Angela and Sam emptied their guns into Jake. Austin knew that she had warned the kid and he chose to do what made her react. What troubled him was the emotionless face she wore as she advanced to look at the kid lying on the ground.

Austin knew that she had killed humans before and it bothered her every time. This was different. Looking at Sam, he saw the anger and hate in his eyes. When they met up to look down at the kid, Austin could see the same person but it was like looking at two halves that became whole as they emptied their guns at the kid. He heard about the rogue slayers and wondered if this was how she reacted when she killed most of them.

His attention was turned to the gate as the gears clanked. The others were walking towards Sam and Angela and he could tell through their body language that they were a little shaken at the pair’s behavior. Angela was the one that brought even a slight shiver down his spine. Her eyes had not gone out but the narrowed look and the billowing of her hair… Austin had a feeling that he was seeing something that was meant for a major showdown. He continued to watch.

****

Dean didn’t know what to say as he walked up towards his brother and Angela. He glanced down at the body and back up at his brother. Sam looked pissed as he wiped his face. Angela looked at Dean but there was no expression on her face. It was like she had shut herself off from the emotional consequences of killing a human.

Dean knew she had no problem killing demons and other things. At least Sam was showing anger and he took it as a warning that he wasn’t to say anything. Then again Sam could be pissed at him if he had guessed at what he had done to bring him back. Angela though… it was like looking at a whole different person.

Angela knew that Dean was freaked at her. He probably thought that she completely shut herself off. She was very much aware that she was killing a human but she had no sympathy. It was like killing Cal all over again. It was like something inside urged her to push the limit and venture into territory that she had been afraid to enter and it was more pronounced than it had ever been.

She had been aware that she could have let Ellen be collateral damage as she fought Jake mentally for control. It had been tempting but she refused. She would never use Ellen that way. She instead let that urge loose on Jake the moment Dean and Bobby got to her and wrenched the gun away. She had no pity for Jake and felt no qualms about shooting him.

The gears of the door caught her attention and her eyes glowed brighter and she turned away from Dean to look at the gate. The last of the gears clicked into place and the pentacle star was formed. It was Bobby who said, “Oh no.”

“What is it Bobby?” Ellen had to ask. She knew that it was a gate to hell but the rumbling was something that was not reassuring.

“It’s hell,” Angela replied.

Dean reached and grabbed the Colt out of the lock just as Bobby and Angela shouted, “Take cover.” It was completely unexpected when he felt her hand grip his jacket and vault with him over the tombstone. The force would have been enough to knock the wind out of him but her grip controlled the fall. He watched as she rolled and got up into a kneeling position and like a pro, she emptied the empty bullets of her gun and popped another set in with practiced ease and peer over the edge.

The door to the Devil’s Gate busted open with force and the familiar black smoke came out. Angela watched as the smoke hit the air. The force of the gate opening had busted the devil’s trap and now they were free. They had their work cut out for them.

“Come on, we gotta shut that gate!” Ellen was shouting over the force of the demons and trapped souls exiting the pit.

Sam, Bobby and Ellen raced forward to push the gate closed just as Angela and Dean stood up. Her eyes stopped their glowing as she stared at the gate and then looked at Dean. He was looking at the Colt and he checked it. There was still one bullet left. He spoke his thoughts, “If the demon gave this gun to Jake, then…”

It was reaction as Dean and Angela both spun to see the demon looking at them. Dean cocked the gun and pointed it only to have it yanked away. The demon grinned at him and said, “Boys shouldn’t play with Daddy’s guns.”

The next thing Dean knew was that he was flung and his head collided with a tombstone. He could see Angela land with a roll and she was on her feet. He guessed that she countered with her powers or something. She was at his side in an instant and she looked like a mama bear protecting her cub. She said, “Been having too much fun sending the pawns have we?”

“I see that the queen has stopped bitching and let it loose.”

“The queen decided to play the game differently,” Angela replied as her eyes flickered. She had let Azazel throw her but she was in charge of the landing. She had to stay close and be Dean’s wingman on this.

Sam was struggling to help Bobby and Ellen close the gate when he saw Yellow Eyes advance towards Dean and Angela. She was backing up a little but maintaining her ground and her stance indicated that she would protect Dean. Sam was hardly reassured when the demon looked at him to taunt him. “Dean.” He left to go after the demon.

Sam found himself being flung back and into a tree and it hurt like hell but he found that there wasn’t as much pressure as he had felt before. He guessed that Angela was working her mojo again. She was trying to lessen it but she couldn’t counter and yet the progress she had made when they talked at Cold Oak…

“I’ll get to you in a minute champ. But I’m proud of you,” Azazel said as he grinned in pleasure. “I knew you had it in you just as I knew my little pretty here had it in her.” He looked at Dean struggling on the ground and pushed him against the tombstone. “Sit a spell.”

Azazel then saw Angela. She had pulled that infernal blade of hers out. He hadn’t seen it on her before and figured she had either hidden it or someone else had carried it in and left it for her. She took a couple of cautious steps as she twirled the blade in her hand. He smiled, “Ah yes. That is the killer instinct I want to see. Take your best shot.”

Angela was no fool. She maneuvered her way to stand in front of Dean. It seemed like an eternity before she moved. The result was being pushed back. She resisted so she didn’t fly but her feet dragged on the ground as she skidded back.

“Nice but I think you need to relax a little,” Azazel replied. He moved his hand and jerked her forward until she was on the ground. He managed to get her on her back and was impressed that she was resisting as well as she could with the limited practice she had. “I have to have a word with Dean here.” He then walked up to Dean kneeled and said, “So, Dean, I gotta thank you. You see, demons can’t resurrect people unless a deal is made. I know, red tape, it’ll make you nuts. But thanks to you, Sammy’s back in rotation. Ha, ha. Now I wasn’t counting on that but I’m glad. I liked him better than Jake anyhow and your care with my little pretty there…”

“I… am… not your… pretty,” Angela retorted, the anger blazing in her eyes as she struggled against her bindings. This demon was tearing Dean’s story apart. She could see him suffering at that fact.

Azazel looked at her and said, “Oh you are, love. Ever since you sprung me, I knew there was something about you. The potential you have after that display…” Azazel hissed in pleasure. He turned back to Dean and continued, “Tell me have you ever heard the expression, ‘If a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is’?”

“You call that deal good?” Dean gave a wry grin as he replied. His head hurt like hell and he probably had a concussion but hey he had nothing to lose now.

“Ah, it’s a better shake than your Dad ever got. And you never wondered why. I’m surprised at you.” Azazel then leaned in close. “I mean, you saw what your brother and my little pretty just did to Jake, right? That was pretty cold, wasn’t it?” Azazel couldn’t help but laugh. He laughed at the grimacing Dean was making. “How certain are you that what you brought back is 100 percent pure Sam? 100 percent the Angela that you knew?” He started laughing again at the pained expression on Dean’s face. Oh if he only knew what he did.

Sam watched the whole thing and heard everything. He looked at Angela who was struggling to get up and Dean who looked pained, as if his heart had been ripped out. What did he do? He gritted his teeth as he struggled. Azazel was saying to Dean, “After everything you’ve been through. You of all people as well as my little pretty know that what’s dead should stay dead.”

Azazel was relishing this. He stood up and looked down at Dean. “Anyway thanks a bunch. I knew I kept you alive for some reason. Until now anyway. I couldn’t have done it without your pathetic self-loathing self-destructive desire to sacrifice yourself for your family.” He pointed the Colt at Dean.

Angela watched the motion. It was like watching Sam get stabbed all over again. Gritting her teeth and reaching deep down, she screamed against her bonds just as John came into her line of vision. It was enough to break her free just as he grabbed the demon. She was on her feet quickly and watched as he wrestled with the demon in its smoke form.

Angela took the opportunity to get to Dean and check him out. Looking at the Colt, it slid along the grass towards them. She looked at Dean and they shared a look of understanding. She would stand by him when the moment of truth came and he had to confess to Sam. She would take her licks too. She helped Dean sit up and gave him the Colt.

By that time the demon had thrown John off and he landed in the grass. Angela and Dean both focused on the cloud of smoke as it snaked back into the meat suit it had claimed. She looked at Dean and he gave a slight nod. Once the demon was back in its meat, he stood up only to be facing the barrel end of the Colt.

Dean felt every emotion that he had been feeling since this whole thing started wallow through his being. It was time to end this. He cocked the hammer and pulled the trigger. He watched as the bullet struck the demon in the heart. The demon looked stunned that Dean managed to hit him as he dropped over dead.

“Check mate,” Angela said softly. In truth it wasn’t, but for this game, it was.

With the demon dead, his hold on Sam was released. Sam gasped as he dropped and got a good look at his dad. He stood up just as Dean did with some help from Angela. All four of them looked down at the empty meat suit that was once Yellow Eyes. It was like something completely out of left field. The demon was dead.

Angela stood back a ways while John and Dean walked towards each other and shared a Winchester touching moment. The Gate was closed and they had the Colt. Now it was time for father and sons to share in the moment. The nightmare that had begun the night that Mary died was over. She looked over and saw Austin standing with Cerebus. She gave a nod and Austin returned it before taking off. Cerebus stayed where he was watching.

Angela watched the family share looks and she felt relief and happiness for them. It was then that John turned to look at her. She swallowed a bit not knowing what to expect. She failed him when Sam died and… He was smiling at her? It took a moment for Angela to process the fact that John was smiling at her. He held out his hand towards her. Slowly she lifted her hand and he took her wrist and in reaction she took his.

His grip was firm like the first time they met. She looked John in the eye and could see the tears. He gave a nod at her. She understood now. He was thanking her; thanking her for keeping her promise to him. She was speechless as he released her hand and took a step back and the light happened. He was at peace. He was proud of his sons.


	21. Chapter 21

The only thing Dean could say after all that as the three of them stood over the body of the dead demon was, “Well, check that off the to do list.”

Sam gave a slight smile, “You did it.”

“I didn’t do it alone.”

“Do you think Dad really…? You think he really climbed out of hell?” Sam had to ask. It was till unbelievable that at the right moment their dad came.

Dean looked at the gate, “A door was open. What do you think Angie?”

Angela had said nothing for a time. She looked up from the body of the demon and looked at the boys and said, “I once told you Sam that a father would do anything to protect their greatest treasure. I know he did.”

Dean moved to stand by his brother, “Well, if anyone’s stubborn enough to do it… it would be him.”

“I would drink to that,” Angela replied. She knew how stubborn John was especially when she had worked with him. She would have a drink in his honor later. The occasion also warranted a drink for Mary. Her killer was finally serving his just rewards.

Sam accepted that. He found it a little humorous that Angela would mention having a drink since she was not an avid whiskey drinker but he suspected that she had her reasons. He looked over at Dean and asked, “Where do you think he is now?”

Dean replied, “I don’t know.” Who really did know?

Angela decided to speak. She really didn’t know completely but she knew that the look on John’s face said much. “At peace.” She looked at the boys and gave a slight smile. She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her locks. It really was a moment of disbelief. Now that it was over… well this battle… she had no idea what was going to happen next. Yet she was going to keep going. She may get tired of it like she admitted to Bobby but she would keep going. Tomorrow was another day after all and probably chock full of the next job.

It was a moment of disbelief for both brothers. Sam looked over at Angela who was looking on with a calm acceptance. He thought that at least she would be relieved that this was all over. He said, “I kind of can’t believe it, Dean. I mean… Our whole lives, everything, has been prepping for this. And now… I kind of don’t know what to say.”

Both brothers looked at each other. Dean gave a slight nod and replied, “I do.” He kneeled down and said to the body, “That was for our mom. You son of a bitch.”

****

Angela knew the moment of truth was coming when Sam said, “You know, when Jake saw me it was like he saw a ghost. I mean, hell, you heard him, Dean. He said he killed me.” She inwardly cringed as she leaned against the car and studied her arm. She had discarded the sling since it was feeling much better on that count. The bite wound though was going to take a little longer.

Dean of course was still sticking to his story. She had seen the look on his face as he closed the door and leaned against the Impala. She said nothing though. This was his bus and she was along for the ride. She listened as he replied, “Glad he was wrong.”

“I don’t think he was, Dean.” Sam knew that Dean was lying. Now that the tension was over, he could see clearly through the events that happened and the guilty movements his brother made. He was trying to hold his temper in as he glanced at Angela. He knew that she knew the truth too. He didn’t see it before but the times when he asked questions about what happened in Cold Oak and she didn’t look at him… it made sense. He could see though that she was not going to say anything about it and he took it to mean that he was to ask Dean about it. He looked at his brother and asked, “What happened? After I was stabbed?”

Dean gave his slight smile. Sam was being persistent again. “I already told you.”

“Not everything.”

Dean had to get Sam’s mind off of this. He knew that Angela was giving him the look. She wanted him to tell the truth. Hell she had wanted that from the very beginning but she went along with it because she knew how Sam would react. Now she knew the jig was up but he didn’t want that to be so just yet. He glanced at her before turning to his brother and said, “Sam, we just killed the demon. Can we celebrate for a minute?”

Sam didn’t want to ask the question but he knew that if he did, Dean’s reaction would tell him what he needed to know. That desperate attempt Dean gave to try and steer him away from this topic was the motivation to ask, “Did I die?”

“Come on,” Dean replied trying to make it seem like it was ridiculous.

“Did you sell your soul for me? Like Dad did for you?”

“Come on. No.” Dean spat it out. He was not having this conversation. _Please Sammy. Give it up._

Sam recognized the signs of Dean lying to him and it was out of some need to protect him. He moved to stand in front of his brother. “Tell me the truth.” When Dean refused, he repeated, “Dean, tell me the truth.”

“Sam.” Dean shook his head. Sam had to keep poking. He looked at Angela who was motioning with her eyes to at least say it. Yet she understood why he couldn’t.

Sam looked at Angela. He knew now that she knew and the way she was looking at Dean, she was trying to get him to tell the truth. It hurt because he knew that his brother sold his soul and it hurt that she couldn’t tell him that she knew. “How long do you get?”

Dean knew that there was no going back now. Sam knew and there was no point in lying but he could keep Angela’s part in this out of the limelight. For some reason he didn’t know, he didn’t want Sam to think badly of her when he always had faith in her character. He finally looked at Sam and replied, “One year. I got one year.”

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Sam replied after looking in all directions trying to school his emotions. He was going to lose Dean. “How could you do that?”

“Don’t get mad at him, Sam,” Angela finally spoke. “He had to and yes I knew he made the deal and… I understand his logic.”

Dean realized that she had given him a block to stand on but she was treading close to giving Sam the noose to string her up with. She was standing by him like she said she would. Well he would keep her part in this a secret. He owed her that. He felt the tears start to well up as he said, “I had to look out for you. That’s my job.”

“And what do you think my job is?”

The question confused Dean. “What?”

Sam had to explain the thoughts he had harbored over the years. “You saved my life over and over. I mean, you sacrifice everything for me. Don’t you think I’d do the same for you? You’re my big brother. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. And I don’t care what it takes. I’m gonna get you out of this. Guess I gotta save your ass for a change and maybe Angie does too.”

“I do plenty already,” Angela replied, finally relieved that the truth was out, but she was perplexed that Dean didn’t mention her part. He had his reasons and she wouldn’t touch that unless it came up. She would have to make that clear with Dean in private. At least they weren’t living a lie. “I guess I have some research coming my way.”

Dean smiled at his baby brother and Angela. With the two of them around, they would find a way. He agreed, “Yeah.”

In the meantime, Ellen and Bobby caught up with them along with Cerebus. Ellen looked at the three of them and said, “Well the yellow eyed demon might be dead but a lot more got through that gate.”

Angela glanced at Dean. It was back to business. Dean asked, “How many you think?”

“A hundred, maybe two. It’s an army,” Angela replied softly. One game was done but the next one already had the first move down and white always moved first. “More of the same,” she muttered softly.

It was a quiet moment as everyone looked at each other. The idea that there was a demon army out there waiting to do God knows what was a daunting thought. It was Bobby who said, “Hope to hell you three are ready. Because the war’s just begun.”

Angela looked at both boys. Hell she was game. She was always game since there was always one more battle to fight. She didn’t have to look at Cerebus to know that the hell mutt would stand by them even though it was going to take some getting used to from everyone. She gave a slight nod in the direction of Dean and he gave his signature grin, “Well then we got work to do.”

****

“What are you doing out here? It’s freezing out here.”

Angela didn’t move as she continued to look up at the night sky. They had made it back to Bobby’s in record time and that was after she snaked the keys from Dean since he did have a minor concussion. He didn’t protest though and let her drive the car with Sam sitting next to her and Dean in the back seat.

Once they had gotten to Bobby’s she went about her usual business and took care of injuries and made sure they were dressed. She hid the whiskey though stating that she didn’t need more problems from Dean’s drinking habits. Of course Dean scowled at her for that but followed her lead since she was the sorcerer and he was the sorcerer’s apprentice.

Now she was sitting outside in her area of the junkyard staring up at the night sky. The temperature had dropped but that was in consequential. It was quiet and she could muddle through thoughts or just empty her head of them. However Dean managed to find her and was now asking her what she was doing, as if that weren’t obvious. She replied, “Thinking and nothing. Maybe I’ll play a game of chess.”

Dean made a slight face as he walked towards Angela. She was sitting on some beam that looked like the kind that gymnasts used with one knee drawn up and the other dangling. She was looking up at the stars like she always did when she went out just to sit. It was also the time when Sam would come around and pester her. Well he found her first so maybe they could talk a little before Samantha showed up. “Can I join you?”

“Be my guest Dean.” Angela looked down and gave Dean a welcoming smile. As he climbed up to sit, she said, “I take it you want to talk to me about something.”

“Am I that obvious?”

“Honestly? Obvious like the white elephant in the room,” Angela replied with a smile. “This is about everything that happened right?”

“Hitting the nail on the head like always,” Dean replied as he made himself comfortable. He looked down at his hands for a moment before looking up at the sky. How was he going to say this? They both knew what happened so was there really a reason to go back there? Dean made a slight movement with his mouth until he finally said, “Angie, do you think I did the right thing?”

Angela looked at Dean, her head resting on her knee. “You really think you should be asking me this?” It was an honest question since she was sure that maybe he did do the right thing but in the wrong way. However was it right anyway to bring back the dead? After all she knew better than most that for things like that, there was a price to pay.

Dean shrugged, “I don’t know. Maybe. You know more about us than you care to admit at times and in normal situations that could be considered stalking or something but… I don’t know. I was hoping to keep up the story and then Sam wouldn’t have to worry about what I did.”

“As he said, he would do anything for you.”

“Tell me about it. And it would be something stupid like what I did.”

Angela felt her lips twitch in a slight smile. Dean got that point right. The Winchesters were an odd lot and she figured she was something like that too. She would have been willing to do what it took to bring back a few people that shouldn’t have died. She replied, “I guess there is plenty of stupidity to go around. Dean… why didn’t you say anything about my involvement? I could tell you that Sam figured out that I knew what you did and frankly I’m surprised he didn’t come after me like Bobby did.”

Dean suspected that Angela knew the reason but she just wanted to hear it from him. Or maybe she didn’t know and she wanted to know. How could he tell her that even with the crap that happened between them, he saw what a good person she was. She made him feel that he wasn’t a pathetic and self-loathing piece of meat when she showed and taught him things and how to better his own skill set. She was good for Sam too since she seemed to put up with the things that had annoyed him and Dad. How could he sum it up in his typical Dean fashion? He replied, “Because I don’t want him to lose faith in you, Angie. And I have faith in you.”

That was deep even for Dean and Angela knew it. She also suspected that he wasn’t comfortable in sharing feelings and that was fine. Actions did speak louder than words. He did patch her up when Bobby brought her in and scolded her when she cut herself. “That’s deep even for you Dean but worth its weight in gold.” She rubbed her hand where the scar was and continued, “To be honest, I am rather glad you said that.”

Dean gave a slight smile as he put a hand to his head. The cut was still sore and he did have a lump the size of an egg. It was a complete surprise when Angela reached over with one hand and touched the cut. He watched a soft glow emanate from her hand and when it was over, the lump had receded and the cut was healed. He tenderly touched where it was and looked at her. He now understood what she had been trying to do in order to save Sam. “Did you?”

Angela nodded. No more secrets about her abilities. They already saw her telekinetic and telepathic. “I can heal. Why it didn’t work with Sam, I can’t say but I am surprised that it came back after the Gate. Stories I heard tell that such an ability is wielded by healers… not killers.”

“So… about Jake…”

Angela looked up at the sky. “A pawn in a larger game Dean. I warned him that I would retaliate if he attempted to harm people I cared about. No one messes with Ellen like that and by extension, you, Sam and Bobby. Killing is easy Dean and you should know that but the real consequences come when it comes to humans… at least for me. Mainly it’s because I know how fragile life is and yet if someone makes that choice to join the other side, then…” She shrugged a shoulder.

Dean knew she had killed humans before. Hell that Cal guy and his crew were humans. Then though when she was finished, she seemed a little troubled and now she seemed… Dean wasn’t sure but it was different. “I suppose then it’s a good thing that we are jumping into the fight before that happens.”

“Anticipation usually makes for the best player.”

Dean looked at Angela and asked, “What is it with the chess metaphors?”

If Angela had any thoughts about why Dean would ask about that, they didn’t show. She looked at Dean and replied, “Chess is war… you know the object of the game. It’s about strategy and pitting your mind against your opponents. In a way it is like poker where you not only play the cards but the other guy.”

Dean could relate to that. He had no idea how she knew that about poker since she always seemed to prefer the pansy stuff like word puzzles like Sam did. “So that’s why you were playing while dropping hints for us to answer questions about the Devil’s Gate. Though why play against yourself?”

“You’d be surprised what your own mind comes up with,” Angela replied. “Several times I actually found solutions that could have won battles in history. Of course who listens to a female who prefers to wear pants instead of a dress?” She gave a chuckle as she sobered. “It’s how I play against my opponents. I learned the hard way that if I don’t anticipate or at least try to anticipate what’s going to happen, then the dominoes can literally start to fall and all hell breaks loose. Believe me because that was what happened when I died once. Of course I’m alive now and out of sheer love by my father for me. I know how you feel Dean. You feel you shouldn’t even be alive but let me tell you something. John gave his life for you. He gave you a second chance. Most people kill to get a second chance to change their lives. I don’t know if I took advantage of it when mine was given back to me but at least I can make a difference now by helping you out.”

Dean was still trying to process the fact that she admitted that she had died and had been brought back to life. Did she know what Yellow Eyes meant by that question he asked about Sam? Was that what he meant in referring to her? Yet she said that her dad gave his life to bring her back. They weren’t so different after all.

“Dean? Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Dean looked at Angela as she was peering at him. She said that he had been given a second chance. Did he waste it by giving up his life for Sam’s? She didn’t say that. She was saying that the times he had cheated death, he had been given a second chance. He had to make the most of it. Hell he figured she was doing that since she shared that she had died and came back. “I think so Angie. The thing is if I try to get out of it, Sam dies.”

“Not if I can help it,” Angela replied. “I have a few options that I intend to look into. I’m not making promises though.”

“No one ever asked you to,” Dean replied. He didn’t mean for it to sound like a petulant child but that was just his way of speaking. It was true though. No one ever asked her to make a promise in any of the things she did. She did them because she wanted to except for the one she made to Dad. Dean finally got around to reading the entry that Sam wanted him to read before all this started and he found out that Dad did manipulate the situation to get her cooperation knowing that he was playing on her kind nature.

“No but I did because maybe it brings me closer to humanity. Let’s face it. I’m human in most things except for the fact I get eye teeth like Cujo, I heal quickly and I can live virtually forever barring accidents and deadly viruses.”

“Not to mention some pretty cool powers. I do have to admit the way you resisted Yellow Eyes and stayed upright, that was impressive,” Dean replied with a smirk. “And you tried to save Ellen. I saw the gun move away from her head. I mean I know you can get us out of a jam with traffic cops but what you did… You know I didn’t believe Sam at first when he said that you could do that. I’ll admit that it sounds scary but if you didn’t have it I don’t think things would have gone the way they did.”

Angela looked at Dean and he grinned at her. She smiled back. She had always been afraid of those powers and that she would succumb to the feeling that she was superior. Yet when she did it, she was able to resist. “Maybe you’re right Dean. I guess that adds a new dimension to things.”

“Just remember though, if I find myself dancing butt naked in the street and singing some bitch emo song, I’m blaming you.”

“That actually has potential,” Angela replied with a slight grin. Dean was okay with her use of her powers. By extension Sam was too and for that matter Bobby. Ellen didn’t seem to care since she thanked Angela by holding her in a hug for a full five minutes and thanking her for trying. “Maybe I’ll have Cerebus tease you by stealing your pants and boxers.”

“Don’t bring the hell mutt into this,” Dean warned in the friendliest manner. “I made an exception on the way back to let him ride in my baby. After that, he walks wherever he goes.”

Angela laughed a genuine laugh. It was infectious as Dean started to laugh as well. They were interrupted by a familiar voice saying, “Did I miss the joke? What’s so funny?”

Dean looked to see Sam standing there looking at the pair of them. Angela was laughing but reduced it to a rumbling within her chest. She said, “Nothing. We’re just enjoying a night out in the moonlight.”

Sam frowned slightly but was amused by the comment. It seemed that she was back to her old self in many ways. That produced a pleasant feeling. He replied, “Should I leave you two alone?”

“You better not. Dean may get some funny ideas about using my Jedi Mind tricks. You know how he digs being a little kinky,” Angela replied with a saucy grin at Dean. She wanted to laugh at the look on his face.

Sam felt the smile threaten at the look on his brother’s face. She effectively got him with a joke that was about as heavy handed as one he would lay on. She jumped down from her seat and walked towards Sam and said, “Or I’ll leave and try to come up with a way to hand you your unsuspecting asses using said mind tricks. We’ve got work to do you know. I might even consider the running butt naked scenario. I might get a few laughs out of that one.” She started walking back towards the house leaving the two brothers watching her.

 Sam looked at Dean and asked, “Dude, what did you say to suggest that?”

“Nothing.”

“Guys, I was kidding about the butt naked thing,” Angela gave a shout. She hadn’t moved that much at all. “But I was serious about handing you your asses.”

“Fine. You win Angie,” Dean replied as he jumped down. He was followed by Sam as they walked to meet up with her. When they were close enough, he said, “But no Cujo.”

“Deal,” Angela replied. “Besides I can’t have the best knights on the board look bad in front of the side castle.”

“Will you quit with the chess references?” Dean replied with a smirk on his face to show that he didn’t mean it.

“Will you give up pie?” Angela retorted. She knew that Dean wouldn’t and added, “Didn’t think so.”

The three walked into the house arguing over the fact that Dean had been had again by Angela. While Sam and Dean were arguing over something she had said, Angela took a backwards glance out at the stars. The war had just begun so the moments like these were going to be few and far between. Not to mention the whole deal issue and if they learned her stipulation on the deal, that would be a debacle. She would deal with it as it came along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that is a wrap for this episode and Season 1 of Chronicles of Absolution. Thanks to all who have read, kudos and reviewed. It is truly appreciated. Stay tuned for Season 2 and the year Dean has until his deadline.


End file.
